Athletic, talented Cline to ink with Mineral Area SB

Advance/Bell City senior softball center fielder Kaylee Cline readies to take the field in a recent game at Bernie High School. Cline will sign to play at Mineral Area Community College this morning at Advance High School.

Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

Today will certainly be a better day for Advance High School senior softball player Kaylee Cline than Tuesday was. Having said that, as good as Cline has been for the Class 1 No. 5-ranked Hornets this spring, Tuesday’s tough day in a 13-3 loss at Class 1 No. 7-ranked Holcomb will certainly be an outlier for Cline and her teammates.

“Kaylee is a great hitter,” Advance/Bell City coach James Hamlin said recently. “She is going to put the ball in play almost all of the time.”

That is why Mineral Area Community College has recruited Cline to play beginning in the fall, and she will sign her National Letter of Intent with the Cardinals this morning at 11 a.m. at Advance High School.

“It’s hard to get a ball down (against Cline) in center field,” Hamlin continued, “she runs well and tracks the ball down well.”

Forget Tuesday’s outing, a game in which she popped out and grounded out, only reaching base when she was hit by a Holcomb pitch. Aside from that one game, Cline has been on fire this spring for the Hornets, who lost for the first time in seven outings on Tuesday.

Entering Thursday’s game against Clearwater (3-1) in Advance, Cline has totaled 14 hits, half of which are doubles.

She has a triple, has scored 12 times, driven in 11 runs, walked three times, and stolen eight bases, which is a testament to her athletic ability.

“She can play anywhere,” Hamlin said.

Cline has been a regular in center field this spring, but Hamlin had to utilize her at catcher late last year, and Cline was so good that she was named to the Class 1 All-Region squad.

“She can basically play anywhere in the infield,” Hamlin continued. “She does a little bit of everything.”

Mineral Area is contemplating using Cline as either a shortstop or an outfielder, according to Hamlin.

“But for us,” Hamlin said, “she has been about everywhere.”