EAST LANSING — While South Lyon couldn’t get past Saline during its second appearance in the Division 1 state softball championship, the 5-2 loss on June 14 proved that Rylee Miller was ready for the moment.
The leadoff batter went 3 of 4 with a double, scored a run and totaled five putouts, never letting the wild environment and even crazier fanfare inside Michigan State’s Secchia Stadium get to her.
Which is saying something because not only is she a freshman, but she’s not even a natural infielder.
“She’s resilient,” coach Jerry Shippe said. “Nothing fazes that kid, which is unbelievable as a ninth-grader, as a 14, 15 year old. Nothing fazes her, and that’s what’s going to make her successful here for the next three years.”
Despite being a center fielder for the prestigious Finesse travel softball program, it was hard for Miller to find playing time at that position because the Lions (33-8) already had senior Maggie Badrak there.
Bradrak was one of their three returning All-Lakes Valley Conference first-team selections, alongside shortstop Izzy Nooe and third baseman Ella Glowacki, and an important piece to their campaign to the final four a year ago.
Yet, Shippe realized Miller’s bat was too reliable to leave out of the lineup, especially since she can slap bunt.
His idea? Let’s give her a chance at first base and see how it goes. The logic made sense. Her athleticism and 5-foot-8 frame helped her make the varsity basketball team. Surely it’d give her an edge at a new position.
“I got lucky that no balls were hit to me early (during her first few games), but it was fine playing first,” Miller said. “I like playing infield. I like the bond that we have in the infield, but it was definitely a different scenery for me.”
Miller learned the position on the fly, while her bat was clutch throughout the postseason.
She smacked two doubles as South Lyon upset Northville in the regional final.
She drove in two runs and had three hits against LVC rival Walled Lake Northern in the quarterfinal, an impressive feat considering the Knights’ pitcher was Toledo commit Lyla Turmell.
Although South Lyon drove in only one run in its victory over Utica Ford in the state semifinal, Miller had another two hits and a stolen base in the leadoff spot.
But perhaps what she did against Saline was the most impressive. She was the only Lion to earn three hits against future Wayne State pitcher Abby Curtis, who was almost untouchable on the game’s biggest stage. The junior struck out 13 of the 29 batters she faced, including tossing three straight strikeouts in both the second and fourth innings.
It’s safe to say Shippe’s hunch to move Miller to first base was a success.
“I’ve known her for a while, and I’ve known what she can do,” Shippe said. “When she got the opportunity and she was comfortable at first, we knew this was the way we were going to go with it because we knew what kind of bat she had and what kind of athlete she is as a freshman.”
Miller admitted she never expected to become an infielder this spring, but she was thankful for the opportunity to contribute to the team. She enjoyed creating a bond with Glowacki, Nooe, second baseman Isabella Bracali, who drove in the winning run vs. Ford, and catcher Mady Furstenau.
“I’m just glad I was able to make it to where I am today,” Miller said. “I didn’t play at the beginning of the season, so to lead off in the bigger games is a good accomplishment for me. I’m just glad I got to play with these girls as well. It means a lot to me, and I hope that we can make it this far all three years that I’m here.”
Shippe agreed, comparing Miller’s will to win to that of Nooe, who is arguably the best athlete at South Lyon. Nooe is signed with Bethel University in Indiana, despite overcoming her 5-4 height.
On the basketball court, Nooe took over games as a ball-dominant point guard, leading the Lions (20-3) to LVC and district championships and an appearance in the regional final with her hustle and heart. What’s more, she eclipsed the 1,000-point scoring milestone for her career.
Heck, she helped South Lyon make it to MSU in softball all while doing workouts with her college basketball team.
If Miller is half as successful as Nooe going forward, the Lions will be in OK shape.
“We’re excited about her,” Shippe said. “Sometimes you get that athlete that’s just a competitor and just wants to compete, and she’s one of them. She’s the Izzy Nooe in that competitor regard and the way she handles herself.”
What went wrong at MSU?
South Lyon left six runners on base, including three at third.
“We just couldn’t take advantage of the runners in scoring position and cash them in,” Shippe said. “We’ve done it all year. We’ve worked on it a lot, and we just couldn’t get the clutch hit when we needed it.”
Saline’s Gracelyn Waldrop drove in the winning run on a line drive in the third inning, giving Sydney Hastings enough time to sprint home from third base.
Also helping the Hornets (40-3-2) win their first-ever state championship was Ava Stripp, who crushed a solo home run way past the fence in left field for a 2-1 lead in the second.
Highlights for South Lyon included Bracali driving in Miller in the first, Glowacki doubling home Bracali in the sixth and pitcher Havanna Bissett striking out four and getting the defense out of every jam it faced.
“We just couldn’t get that timely hit when we needed to, and sometimes it catches up to you,” Shippe said.
Having faith in the future
The Lions graduate five seniors. That includes three starters in Nooe, Badrak and left fielder Avery Bourlier. But they’re expected to return 13 players, seven of whom were key contributors during the playoffs.
From Sloan Jambor, the hero vs. Northern, to Bracali, the MVP of the win over Ford, Bissett, who dueled against some of the toughest pitchers Michigan has to offer over the past month, and several others.
Next year, they hope to make their third state final appearance since they won the championship in 2021.
“(We’ll be) strong, strong,” Shippe said. “We’re going to be back again. We’ve got a lot of kids who are young. We’ve got a lot of kids in our JV program and a lot of kids coming in so that tradition is just going to continue, and I’m very excited about the future.”
Brandon Folsom covers high school sports in metro Detroit for Hometown Life. Follow him on Twitter at @folsombrandonj.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: Meet Rylee Miller, the next Izzy Nooe for South Lyon softball
Reporting by Brandon Folsom, Hometownlife.com / Hometownlife.com
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