After a record-breaking fall season, Platte County senior shortstop Bryli Seifert earned Class 4 Player of the Year honors from the Missouri High School Fastpitch Coaches Association (MHSFCA).
Seifert, now a four-time all-state selection, maintained a .700 batting average while leading Platte County’s softball team to a fourth-place finish in Class 4. She was held hitless in just two of Platte County’s 33 games this season.
Seifert finished the season with 19 home runs, setting Platte County’s single-season record. Only six players in Missouri high school softball history have hit more home runs in a single season, according to MSHSAA records.
She began the season on a 10-game tear, hitting over .862 with nine home runs, including three multi-homer run performances. After an eight-game home run drought, while maintaining a 19-game hitting streak, Seifert hit 10 homers in the final 15 games of her high school career.
Seifert was also selected to the all-state first team, all-region first team, all-district first team and all-conference first team. She finished the season leading Platte County in home runs (19), hits (66), batting average (.716), RBIs (63), runs (60) and walks (33).
Throughout the Pirates’ postseason run, Seifert went 7-for-15 with five RBIs, three home runs and eight runs.
The 5-foot-6 shortstop consistently hit third in Platte County’s batting order. Seifert has committed to play college softball at Louisiana State University (LSU), a program that has made the NCAA Tournament each of the past six years.
While most naturally a middle infielder, Seifert can also play third base and all three outfield positions.
Platte County won its first district title in Seifert’s era this year. They also advanced to State for the seventh time in program history.
According to records dating back to 2018, Seifert broke all program records for career and single-season for her senior year. Those records include batting average (season .717; career .549), hits (season 66; career 174), extra base hits (season 36; career 91), home runs (season 19; 35) and runs batted in (season 62; career 116).
Kinleigh Howren in a game against Park Hill South.
The middle of Platte County’s infield was elite with second baseman Kinleigh Howren playing to Seifert’s left. The junior joined Seifert in Platte County’s only other first-team sweep of all-state, all-region, all-district, and all-conference accolades.
Howren hit .514 with seven home runs, driving in 37 runs on 56 hits while scoring 51 runs as Platte County’s leadoff hitter. She had 18 multi-hit games, including five in which she drove in three or more runs.
Lillian Talbot in Platte County’s quarterfinal victory against Belton.
Lillian Talbot was Platte County’s final all-state recipient, earning a spot on the Class 4 second team. Talbot, who hit at the No. 2 spot, drove in 39 runs while batting .395 on the season with three home runs to also earn selections to the all-region first team, all-district first team and all-conference first team.
Talbot had a two-homer game against Park Hill South amid a nine-game hitting streak. She later followed the hitting streak up with a pair of five-RBI performances against William Chrisman and Raytown.
The senior duo of Reagan Ball and Kelly Bullano also rounded out their careers with three postseason honors each.
Ball was selected to the all-region first team, all-district first team and all-conference second team. She pitched in 31 games for Platte County, recording 88 strikeouts in 165.2 innings, while also hitting .376 at the plate with 24 RBIs and a pair of home runs, including one in the district championship.
Bullano was a speedy center fielder who covered a lot of ground, earning all-region second team, all-district first team and all-conference second team. She hit .321 and scored 26 runs, but most impressively hit two home runs in the Pirates’ district championship game.
Platte County’s postseason honors are rounded out by the sophomore tandem of Grace Shippee and Eva Bane, who both had breakout seasons.
Shippee starred at first base as the Pirates’ cleanup hitter, earning all-region second team, all-district first team and all-conference honorable mention. She ranked second on the team with 41 RBIs, hitting .411 on the season with three home runs, 34 runs, and 10 walks.
Bane earns postseason honors as a first-year catcher for Platte County, featuring as an all-conference honorable mention. She hit .351 on the season, driving in 29 runs on 33 hits with three home runs and nine walks.