The Daily Standard
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Player of the Year
Brittyn Bruns, Parkway
.512 average, 7 triples, 43 runs
Great and gritty performances highlight this year's Daily Standard Softball Dream Team.
Parkway senior shortstop Brittyn Bruns earned this year's Position Player of the Year after leading the area in batting average and dominated at the plate.
Celina junior Lilly Gonzlaez took over the main pitching chores early in the season due to injury and helped the Bulldogs not only retain their Western Buckeye League title, but also reach the district finals, earning her Pitcher of the Year.
Kenleigh Ludlow, in her second season as head coach at Minster, took the Wildcats to a third-straight regional appearance, earning herself Coach of the Year honors.
To say that Brittyn Bruns is a "hard out" is, at the least, an understatement.
After batting .405 as a junior last season with five triples, 33 runs scored and 16 stolen bases, Bruns dominated from the leadoff spot in the Panther batting order.
Bruns, a three-sport athlete who will play volleyball next season at the University of Saint Francis, was the only qualified batter (2 at-bats per game minimum) in the Grand Lake area to bat better than .500 with a .512 average, but that is not even the most impressive part of the stat line. In 86 at-bats (104 plate appearances), Bruns struck out just twice and recorded a .577 on-base percentage. Bruns had seven doubles, seven triples, four home runs, 43 runs scored and 26 RBI as well as going 15-of-17 on stolen bases.
The Panthers reached the district semifinals, losing a 1-0 decision to Minster in Wapakoneta.
Pitcher of the Year
Lilly Gonzalez, Celina
14-2, 2.19 ERA, 75 strikeouts.
After winning the program's first WBL title in several years last season, things were looking good for Celina coming into 2026 with the majority of the starting lineup back, including the Bulldogs' 1-2 punch in the pitching circle with Colbie Kinney and Lilly Gonzalez.
Kinney, last year's Dream Team Pitcher of the Year, started out the season 5-1 with a 1.21 ERA before breaking her pitching arm in a game. Kinney did not return to the lineup until the district final, where she played first base.
Gonzalez stepped up big time.
The junior finished with a 14-2 record with 89 1/3 innings this season, sporting a 2.19 ERA. Gonzalez struck out 75 batters and only walked 21.
Gonzalez's clutch pitching, including in walk-off wins over Shawnee and Bath late in the season, helped the Bulldogs go 9-0 in the WBL for a second straight league crown - and helping Celina's athletic department win the All-Sports Trophy.
The added pitching chores did not diminish her hitting as Gonzalez batted .417 with nine doubles, two triples, two home runs, 24 runs and 44 RBI in earning first team All-WBL honors this season.
Coach of the Year
Kenleigh Ludlow, Minster
19-10 (7-0 MAC); MAC and District Champion
In her first season as head coach in 2025, Kenleigh Ludlow took a loaded Minster squad to the regional final, losing to eventual state champion Tri-Village.
Graduation hit the Wildcats last spring, including 2025 MAC Position Player of the Year Addi Inskeep and pitcher Brooklyn Osterloh.
Ludlow still had some key players back like third baseman Lauren Tyler, shortstop Reece Albers and outfielder Whitney Trego.
The Wildcats overcame a three-game losing streak in late March and went on a tear, earning a chance for a MAC title against league unbeaten Marion Local. The Wildcats run-ruled the Flyers 10-0, then four days later knocked the Flyers out of the Division VI tournament with a 7-2 win. In the district, Minster's Brianna Osterloh outdueled Parkway's Bryn Schoenleben for a 1-0 win in the semifinals before rolling to a 13-0 win over Columbus Grove to return to regionals.
After going south the past several seasons, Minster went north to Bowling Green to face Margaretta, where the Polar Bears won 6-1 to end the Wildcats' season at 19-10.
Tyler, thanks to a .424 batting average, 12 doubles, 36 runs scored and 38 RBI, was named the MAC Position Player of the Year. Brianna Osterloh went 17-6 with 172 strikeouts in 152 1/3 innings.
First Base
Bryn Schoenleben, Parkway
.475 average, 6 home runs, 35 RBI
Mara Wendel, Fort Recovery
.466 average, 9 doubles, 26 runs
Second Base
Alexis Siefring, Celina
.382 average, 5 doubles, 33 runs
Shortstop
Brittyn Bruns, Parkway
.512 average, 7 triples, 43 runs.
Third Base
Lauren Tyler, Minster
.424 average, 12 doubles,
5 home runs
Outfield
Maddie Allen, Celina
.440 average, 8 doubles, 38 RBI
Abby Homan, New Bremen
.478 avearge, 3 triples, 3 home runs
Madelyn Stover, Parkway
.379 average, 34 runs, 27 RBI
Catchers
Paiton Rhodes, Celina
.392 average, 3 triples, 37 runs
Chloe Frysinger, Coldwater
.452 average, 15 doubles, 17 RBI
Designated Player
Campbelle Gass, Celina
.448 average, 51 runs, 38 RBI
Utility Player
Emmery Temple, Parkway
.476 avearge, 6 triples, 33 RBI
Pitchers
Lilly Gonzalez, Celina
14-2, 2.19 ERA, 75 strikeouts
Adyson Van De Keere, St. Marys
12-8, 2.18 ERA, 184 strikeouts
Haley Everman, Marion Local
10-4, 1.44 ERA, 134 strikeouts
Brianna Osterloh, Minster
17-6, 3.35 ERA, 172 strikeouts
Celina:Hayley Germann, Avery Stachler
Coldwater:Harlow Heyne, Dana Zahn
Fort Recovery:Alexis Grisez
Marion Local:Hannah Rindler, Kalyn Thobe, Emma Everman
Minster:Reece Albers, Ansley Wolf
New Bremen:Halle Kuenning, Olivia Thornton
Parkway:KJae Stover, Savada Triplett
St. Henry:Renee Wendel
St. Marys:Ava Klosterman, Ayden Young
