Pair of aces: Beecher softball gearing up for postseason behind Ava Lorenzatti, Taylor Norkus

If the Beecher softball team is able to make the program’s eighth state finals trip this season, the Bobcats know that they’ll once again have to get through one of Class 2A’s toughest gauntlets to get there.

But as long as they have junior pitchers Ava Lorenzatti and Taylor Norkus, the Bobcats know they have as good of a chance as anyone.

The Bobcats finished the regular season 30-2, including 12-0 in the River Valley Conference to go with their 24th straight RVC title. Lorenzatti and Norkus were equally responsible for the regular season success, each going 15-1 with 166 strikeouts.

Lorenzatti, last year’s Daily Journal Player of the Year and a consensus top national pitching recruit for the Class of 2026, has ridden her overpowering riseball to a 1.30 ERA and .145 batting average against over 91 ⅓ innings, throwing three no-hitters with two of those perfect games.

Norkus, whose deceptive changeup has helped her become one of the state’s top pitchers, finished the regular season with a 1.17 ERA as opponents hit .164 in 101 ⅔ innings against her. Four of her six no-hitters this season were perfect games.

“Having the two of them, it’s a really nice luxury,” Bobcats coach Kevin Hayhurst said. “They’re really good, quality kids that are there to win. They want to do well, of course, but they’re really team players.”

Both pitchers made their college commitments soon after the window to do so opened last fall, with Lorenzatti choosing Florida State, her lifelong dream school, and Norkus committing to Colgate (Hamilton, N.Y.).

While two players at the same position on the same team could lead some to bitter competition, especially as they both showcase their talents to potential colleges prior to this season, the bond between Lorenzatti and Norkus has only grown since they first became teammates in junior high.

“We definitely have a lot more in common, just ever since sixth grade,” Lorenzatti said. “Every year our team has gotten a little closer, and now we’re the closest that we’ve been. It’s nice to have Taylor, Makenzie [Johnson] and the other girls that are pursuing the same thing after this, because we just relate so closely and have the same priorities on the field.”

Johnson, a junior, committed to Northern Kentucky, has moved behind the plate this season to serve as the team’s primary catcher. A jack-of-all-trades utility player with Beecher, Johnson profiles as an outfielder and shortstop at the college level, but has made the move behind the plate to catch the pair of standout stars.

“She makes it a lot easier,” Norkus said of Johnson, who is also her neighbor. “Her and coach are really good together and compromise.”

From Johnson’s perspective behind the plate, she sees Lorenzatti find more of her success with the vertical placement of her riseball and Norkus take advantage of the corners of the plate, both with equal success.

“Both of them have different approaches when it comes to pitching, and it works very well,” Johnson said. “I’d say that’s what asserts domination against other teams, is that we have a great pitching staff, probably the best pitching staff in the area.”

With two Division I-bound pitchers throwing to a catcher headed to the D-I level, that talent is enough to make them the team others want to take down, and four other Bobcat seniors are college commits as well. The program enters postseason play as winners of nine of their past 10 regionals, winning 17 since Hayhurst took over ahead of the 2003 season.

“It definitely does put a bigger target on our backs, both as individual athletes and as a team,” Lorenzatti said of the program’s high profile. “But I think that it’s just really exciting to take a step back and realize. During games, it can add a target, but we also know what we’re playing for and why we’re there.”

Why are they there? To add to the Bobcats trophy case before moving on to their college careers and beyond.

“It’s really surreal,” Norkus said. “We all have our own journeys ahead of us. The future’s really bright for all of us.”