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Kyndal Cornelius of Bartow softball is Polk County’s best hitter

VaselineJune 20, 2024

0 2 minutes read

Kyndal Cornelius of Bartow softball is Polk County’s best hitter

LAKELAND — It was almost the perfect end to the season for Bartow third baseman Kyndal Cornelius.

In the state semifinals, she hit a two-run home run. In the championship game, as the Yellow Jackets tried to rally, she launched a towering shot that almost went out. A steady gain to the right had died and the ball was caught at the fence.

Still, it should have come as no surprise that it was Cornelius who almost saved the day. Cornelius was a top hitter throughout her career at McKeel, was a clutch hitter for the Yellow Jackets and was first or second on her team in almost every hitting category.

Cornelius is The Ledger’s 2024 Softball Hitter of the Year.

More softball: How Red Oxley’s growth outside the circle turned Bartow into a never-say-die juggernaut

Softball’s best: Meet the player of the year and the All-Polk County team for softball

The numbers speak for themselves. Cornelius led Bartow in hits (42), doubles (8), triples (5) and extra-base hits (14). She was second in runs scored (31), RBIs (28), batting average (.433) and on-base percentage (.556). And she struck out just six times in a team-high 108 plate appearances, the fewest of any Yellow Jacket with 50 or more plate appearances.

“The most important thing is that she fits in right away,” Bartow coach Glenn Rutenbar said. “And then her impact, she handled third down great for us and then she can do so many different things for us offensively: hit for average, hit for power, steal a base. So she was just big and I put her on third early and she just did a great job for us.

Cornelius wasn’t just any softball player when she came to Bartow. Over three-plus seasons at McKeel (she played as an eighth-grader in the COVID-shortened 2020 season), she had a career batting average of .375 despite hitting just .234 as a sophomore. But that year was sandwiched between a .466 average as a sophomore and a .391 average as a junior.

So there were certainly high expectations when Cornelius joined the team, and she overcame them by finishing her career with perhaps her best season.

“My proudest moment is actually just taking the opportunity to actually come here,” she said. “At first I was scared. I don’t really like change. I’m not used to change, but coming here has been the best year I’ve ever had. It may not have gone the way we wanted, but I wouldn’t have wanted it to go any other way.”

Cornelius admitted she was a little nervous during fall practices, but by the time spring training came around, she felt like part of the team.

Cornelius didn’t go to Bartow thinking she had to live up to her reputation, but instead she had to live up to Bartow’s reputation.

“Honestly, it was more about playing Bartow softball,” she said. “It’s not necessarily that I had to change anything. I just had to play my game.”

VaselineJune 20, 2024

0 2 minutes read

Vaseline

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