MaxPreps Florida Team of Week: P.K. Yonge softball

The magic number for most baseball and softball players is .300. If you hit better than that, you're beating the odds as well as opposing pitchers.

If you're hitting .400, well, then you just about own opposing pitchers.

So imagine the poor softball pitchers around the Gainesville area who face P.K. Yonge (Gainesville), which sports a team .415 average. That's right. If you're hitting .405 on the Blue Wave you're not even pulling your weight.

No wonder Yonge has started the season 21-3 and is the MaxPreps Florida Team of the Week, presented by the Florida National Guard.

"The experience, more than anything else, is what has allowed us to be successful this year," said P.K. Yonge head coach Paul Silverman. "This group has really embraced it. They're very committed, very loyal, they look out for one another — all the positives of being together, we've got that without really any of the negatives. It's been a really enjoyable year for all of us."

The team has a perfect blend of youth and experience with three eighth-graders, one freshman, three sophomores, three juniors and four seniors, but at the K-12 school where young players are allowed to play on varsity, even the young players are seasoned.

Case in point — three of the seniors have been on the varsity team since sixth grade, the other since seventh.

The Blue Wave have piled up 180 runs while giving up 49, thanks in part to the efforts of senior Kalen McGill (.469, 27 RBIs, 10 doubles, three homers), sophomore Kaitlyn Burke (.553, 23 RBIs, four homers, nine doubles) and junior Garland Evans (.457, nine doubles, 20 RBIs).

"(McGill) has been outstanding," said Silverman. "She's done it both in the circle and at the plate."

Senior Kassidy Kennard (.386) and eighth-grader Bailey Ledvina (.377) have knocked home 17 runs apiece. Senior Sara Hendrix sets the table for everyone by hitting .521 with 38 hits and team-best 32 runs. She's also stolen a team-best 44 bases, followed by 32 from sophomore Nikkia Robinson. Third baseman Nikki Santiago, a second-team All-Florida selection last year, also has 15 steals to go along with 17 RBIs, a .343 batting average, .514 slugging percentage and .452 on-base percentage.

"(Hendrix) is our leadoff hitter. She kind of gets us going. When she gets on base we're usually successful," said Silverman.

Silverman counts on McGill and Hendrix to be leaders in games and in practice.

"The talent is there. No matter how hard you work, if you don't have the God-given talent it's going to be difficult to get to the success at their level," he said. "What they do, they combine it with hard work. And that's what brings them to the next level. They don't take their talent for granted.

"Now for seven years, they come out and learn something at practice every day. They're willing to be coached and get better. They're humble. I think all of that allows them to continue to improve."

The Blue Wave have stolen a remarkable 154 bases, or about six per game.

McGill is the team's ace with a 20-2 record and 136 strikeouts.

She helped the team race to a 16-0 record to start the season after it went 25-3 last year, losing 7-0 in the state 3A regional final to Bishop Snyder, which lost in the state finals 1-0 to American Heritage.

Coach Silverman has built a solid program since coming over in 2011 with records of 18-5, 12-8 and last year's 25-3 team.

P.K. Yonge earned the nation's No. 1 spot in the MaxPreps Computer Rankings after starting 11-0.

"We want to win the state championship," said Silverman. "We've knocked at the door. The last two years we've made it to our regional final, and both times we've lost to the same team. With this group of seniors, this is really their last opportunity to do it as a team.

"We've embraced the goal. We've talked about it from the beginning of the year. We want to win the state championship. We think we have the talent to do it, and that is the goal."

Do you know a team that deserves consideration for Florida Team of the Week? Email us with your nominations at FLteamoftheweek@maxpreps.com.