Columbus East’s Hermione Robinson pitches to Edinburgh at Columbus East, Tuesday, March 28, 2023. Paige Grider for The Republic
The Republic file photo
The previous two softball seasons, Columbus East was able to put plenty of runs on the scoreboard, but were giving up more than they could score themselves.
As a result, the Olympians went 7-19 in 2021 and 8-17-1 last season, despite having Division I recruits Kenzie Foster and Kaylee Cole at the top of the lineup and the left side of the infield.
This year, East has added some pitching and some more offensive punch to back up Foster and Cole, who now are seniors. Junior pitcher Hermione Robinson moved in from Greensburg, and senior catcher Maryn Mayes transferred from Columbus North, and they’ve helped the Olympians get off to an 8-2 start going into today’s home game against Class 4A No. 4 North.
“I was pretty confident in our team this year, actually,” Robinson said. “I figured we would (have a good team). Obviously, we’re going to have some rough times. That happens all the time, but you just have to work.”
Robinson and her twin sister Haley, who also is on the softball team, moved with their parents from Greensburg to Newbern last summer.
“We saw how good the academic opportunities were here,” Hermione said. “We could have things like more classes, more devoted teachers, and also, the softball program really drew us in, too.”
Mayes, meanwhile, played at North as a sophomore. She saw spot duty as a backup catcher to then-sophomore and current Bull Dog senior Kirsten Danford and also as a pinch runner.
After sitting out last season at North, Mayes began her senior year at North before transferring to East a week into the school year.
“It was a last-minute decision,” Mayes said. “I love it. I definitely have seen my progress in games. I’m just proud of where I’m at today because I was nowhere near where I’m at right now.”
Mayes is batting .300 with a home run and is second on the team with nine RBIs. She has yet to commit an error behind the plate.
“Maryn has thrown several people out,” East coach Rusty Brummett said. “She’s done a nice job defensively for us. Hermione can throw it pretty hard. It’s not always easy to catch in that situation.”
“I think I’ve definitely improved a lot this year,” Mayes added. “I’m very proud of my progress. I think at North mostly, I just didn’t get a lot of practice in, and this year, I’ve gotten a lot of practice in, a lot of cuts, so it’s definitely helped me improve a lot.”
Mayes played travel softball with the Midwest Astros before switching to the Indiana Crush last year.
“I think Maryn is probably the biggest surprise of the two, and only from the perspective that I didn’t know a lot about her,” Brumett said. “I just knew that she was considering coming out and playing for us, and she was already a student here at East. We had faced Hermione playing Greensburg, so we had seen her pitch, but I hadn’t seen Maryn play.”
Besides being the Olympians’ ace in the circle, Hermione has hit two home runs and is tied for third on the team with eight RBIs.
“I think it’s going amazing,” she said. “I really love this program. I think the coaches show a level of devotion that I’ve never seen before, and I think the girls are great. They’re all so nice and welcoming. I really want to make a good impact on this team. I want to be inspire everybody to try their best.”
Hermione, who plays travel softball for the Indiana Gators, already has committed to play at Mount St. Joseph after graduation. Mayes is considering playing college softball.
“As much, and maybe even more to our program is, both of those girls are quality individuals,” Brummett said. “They work hard at practice, they’re here getting better, they’re listening, they’re coachable, they’re trying to do what we’re asking them to do. When two of your best players, when the other people in the program see them working hard and being coachable, it’s easy for everybody else to kind of do the same thing.
“I love what they’re doing on the field. They’re both doing really well for us batting and doing things offensively for us, and defensively, they’re doing the right stuff,” he added. “But equally, they’re just doing great things for our program. I’d have loved to have had Maryn a couple more years.”
