Shannon ready to take charge at Washington Township

There isn't a whole lot senior pitcher Lauren Shannon can do to top last season. She had 180 strikeouts, shutout after shutout, and a one-hit near-perfect game to secure the Group 4 title for Washington Township, its second in three years.

So she's not trying to. Neither is her team, which went 31-1.

Shannon said the best bet for the 2016 squad is to find its own identity.

And although Washington Township may be in a bit of a rebuild, not much has changed in her focus heading into the season.

"We still have a really good team. We have a good core," said Shannon, who was 25-1 with a 1.22 ERA a season ago. "We know games might be closer than they were last year, but it's just about playing together and having fun."

The team, while young, has a lot of familiar faces. Shannon recalls seeing all of her current teammates at some point during her youth softball days.

"The girls that are on the team right now, I've played with them since we were really little," said Shannon, one of three seniors for the Minutemaids. "We have a really good connection. I think we can play well together."

This season more than ever for Washington Township, the staff ace is being looked to for leadership on and off the field, day in and day out. Shannon is one of the two captains, a big-time communicator whom her coach refers to as the mother of the team.

"When you get to know her, she's like the mom," coach Tracey Burkhart said, looking for the right word to describe the standout pitcher. "She's just such an easy person to look up to.

"She's a really sweet kid and a fierce competitor. She's very hard on herself, very critical of herself. She flat-out tells you that she knows she made a mistake. She tries to be perfect when none of us are."

While Shannon admitted as much, the senior looks at it as a good approach to take.

"I don't let it get to the point where it affects how I play. I just expect the best and always strive to do better," Shannon said. "There's always room for improvement."