Daily Pilot Softball Player of the Year: The evolution of Ivy Davis

Before their time together had come to a close, Huntington Beach High softball coach Jeff Forsberg expressed the sentiment that Ivy Davis would go down as one of his all-time favorite players.

Aside from the talent, the reasons for their close relationship were not always clear. At season’s end, Forsberg opened the book just a bit. He was a huge fan of the shortstop’s maturity. She was seemingly equipped to handle any situation.

Forsberg commended Davis for this attribute at the team banquet, saying, “It’s really tough to be Ivy Davis in high school because everyone is expecting her to do something spectacular because she does spectacular things.”

A max-effort shortstop with power in her bat, Davis was the player that a very talented roster relied on. More often than not, she came through in the clutch. Rightfully so, the team and its fans were a mixture of excitement and nervousness when their leader stepped into the box in the seventh inning of the team’s final game.

The Oilers were down to their last out, the tying run stood at third base, and their most experienced player was at the plate. The unexpected happened, and she struck out.

With most high school athletes, the highs are great and the lows are dismal. Forsberg was always impressed by Davis’ ability to turn the page.

It was not out of the ordinary for Forsberg to text his players after a game, whether the result of the day had been a win or a loss. On the night of their final game, a first-round loss to West Covina South Hills in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 playoffs, the Oilers coach reminded Davis that she would see the big stage again.

“With Ivy, I was like, ‘I’m proud of you,’” Forsberg recalled of his text. ‘You competed. You gave us the best chance to win the game. You were up at the plate. That’s what we wanted. You didn’t come through.

‘Two years from now, you’re going to be playing at Arizona with the game on the line, and you’ll probably come through,’ he continued. ‘You’ll remember that, and you’ll forget about the high school one.’”

Davis was already mature beyond her years upon her arrival at Huntington Beach. Other parts of her game went through several evolutions during her four-year stay. At times, she pitched. When Alyssa Horeczko (Stanford) played for the Oilers, she was the shortstop in waiting. During that time, she did what the team needed her to do, occupying the second base position.

“That’s definitely my mindset anytime I step on the field,” Davis said of fulfilling the team’s needs. “Nothing is solidified going in. I wasn’t thinking, ‘This is my spot. I’m going to be here.’

“All four years have been signs of growth. It’s been a long process all the way through. Coming into shortstop after playing second base, it’s all just growth, putting the team first, and trying to fill a role that they need.”

As a four-year varsity player, Davis instantly assumed a leadership role. That was accentuated by her status as the captain of the infield and her position as the No. 3 batter in the lineup.

The present game philosophy tends to place the best hitter in the No. 3 spot, as opposed to the tradition of the cleanup spot (fourth in the order), on the possibility that it might give the player one additional plate appearance.

Davis embraced these roles, despite the fact that she had been a left-handed hitter who slapped the ball and relied on her speed for most of her high school career. For the first time, she was lifting weights, and she also turned herself around to the right side of the plate.

“I didn’t know how that was going to turn out, especially turning around from the left side,” Davis said of taking ownership of the No. 3 spot in the lineup. “I had always been more of a small-ball, speed player. I was willing to work for that three spot. I didn’t expect to come in right away and have it because I hadn’t been there the last couple of years.

“I was really happy to get the opportunity to be there and stay there the entire season. It really made me want to work harder, keep that spot, and live up to the name of No. 3 spot hitter.”

The Arizona-bound star hit .416 with eight doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. She was tied for the team lead with 29 RBI, and she scored 25 runs.

Davis amassed a laundry list of honors. She earned all-CIF, all-Orange County first team, Sunset League first team, and Orange County All-Star honors.

Coach of the Year

Jordann Wakabayashi

Corona del Mar

When Wakabayashi signed on to become the Sea Kings’ new head coach, she inherited a program that had grown accustomed to being in the cellar. Corona del Mar had gone eight years without a win during Pacific Coast League play. In Wakabayashi’s first season, the team showed a fight that had not been there in recent years. They came from behind with three runs in the top of the seventh to win their first league game against Beckman, and CdM was in the running for a playoff spot until the last game of the season. The Sea Kings finished the year 14-13 overall, 4-6 in league, giving the program its first winning season since 2006.

Wakabayashi was successful in changing the culture at CdM because she understood the situation that she was walking into. There were as many players getting their start in the game as there were that had ever competed on the travel-ball circuit. She was patient, and the Sea Kings coach applied her own experience as a player to tap into the collective mind of her team. “As a player, I was never the type that responded to screamers,” she said. “I liked coaches with a calm demeanor.”

In taking the time to explain drills, Wakabayashi noticed that her club became a proactive group. When mistakes occurred, her players would go through a mental rewind to fix the issue themselves. “From the beginning, they were close,” Wakabayashi said. “I think that helped me out, too. In the dugout, they would take the time to say, ‘Hey, what happened on this play?’ They would talk about it.”

Emily Rush

P, Marina, Fr.

Rush burst on the scene immediately as the Sunset League’s Rookie of the Year. She was effective in a variety of areas, and her contributions in the pitching circle were critical. Marina’s presumed starter entering the season was Amber Baldwin, but a back injury relegated her to playing first base without swinging the bat. Rush led the Vikings to a 6-4 league record (Rush was 5-2 in her decisions), sending the team to the playoffs for the first time in three years. The freshman produced a batting average of .386. She hit for power with eight doubles, four home runs, and 25 RBI.

Kalena Shepherd

C, Estancia, Jr.

Estancia coach Michael Hunter took pride in his team being “strong up the middle.” That started with Shepherd, who was a cut above the competition in Orange Coast League action. She hit a game-tying home run to lead off the top of the seventh inning in a Battle for the Bell game that clinched Estancia’s playoff spot. She hit .566 with 23 RBI, adding eight doubles, two triples, and two home runs. Shepherd was a first-team all-Orange Coast League selection.

Micaiah Watanabe-Patterson

1B, Estancia, So.

After missing most of last season with a torn ACL, Watanabe-Patterson grew in confidence and her production followed. The Eagles first baseman could turn on an inside pitch with ease, providing depth to the Estancia lineup. She posted a .485 batting average with 32 RBI. She could find the gaps, too, delivering six doubles and five triples. Watanabe-Patterson was only a sophomore, so Estancia will return the entirety of the heart of its batting order.

Megan Ryono

2B, Huntington Beach, So.

There were those in the Oilers lineup that could hit for power, but Oilers coach Jeff Forsberg subscribed to the “small ball” philosophy. Ryono led the team with seven sacrifice-bunts while posting a .409 on-base percentage. The sophomore hit .371 with 10 RBI, six doubles, and one triple. When a player is told to go to second base, their coach or dugout will yell, “Go two!” The Ryonos come as a pair, too, as Megan has a twin sister named Kelly. While Megan hit for a higher average, Kelly supplied the power. She hit five home runs, which accounted for 35.7 percent of her hits.

Allee Bunker

3B, Huntington Beach, Jr.

Bunker still has a year ahead of her, but she proved that she is ready for the next level by delivering in all facets of the game. The Oilers third baseman hit .394 with seven doubles, three triples, and two home runs. The Oregon commit tied for the team lead in RBI with 29, and she scored 24 runs. Bunker was not the fastest player on the team. In picking her spots, however, she finished with a team-high 20 stolen bases. The junior was named to the Sunset League’s second-team honorees. Forsberg indicated that the shortstop position will be Bunker’s to lose entering the offseason, as she is now the veteran in the infield.

Brooke Franson

SS, Corona del Mar, Sr.

President Theodore Roosevelt once said to “speak softly and carry a big stick.” No bat sounded off more often than that of the Sea Kings’ senior shortstop. Franson hit .580 with 28 extra-base hits (17 doubles, seven triples, and four home runs). The Manhattanville College signee notched 36 RBI and scored 35 runs. She scored the winning run in CdM’s first league win in over eight years. The three-time Dream Team selection led the Sea Kings to their first winning season since 2006. She was an Orange County Seniors All-Star for the Coastal roster, taking MVP honors in the game.

Jadelyn Allchin

CF, Huntington Beach, So.

The area’s top two prospects were both on the same team. Allchin’s resume rivaled that of Arizona-bound shortstop Ivy Davis. The Washington commit displayed supreme athleticism in center field, letting few fly balls touch the outfield grass. It would be unwise to test her arm, as she threw out a runner trying to stretch a single into a double from the left-center fence in a home game against Los Alamitos. The Oilers sophomore speedster stole 14 bases and scored 31 runs. She hit .430 from the leadoff spot, adding nine doubles, four triples, six home runs, and 27 RBI.

Mallory McCrane

CF/P, Corona del Mar, Jr.

From one speed demon to another, McCrane began her softball career as most fast left-handed batters do – as a slapper. Although she is still more than capable of doing so, the junior has graduated from simply hitting the ball on the ground so that she can beat the throw to first. This year, she laced balls into the gap. She had a pair of triples in a home game against league champion Woodbridge. The center-fielder hit .494 with eight doubles, four triples, and two home runs. She scored 36 runs out of the leadoff spot, stealing a team-high 12 bases and producing 17 RBI. McCrane also filled in as the team’s pitcher in the first half until Audrey Tumbarello returned from injury.

Chance Burden

RF, Huntington Beach, Sr.

Burden was a jack-of-all-trades for Huntington Beach. Selfless at the plate, she was frequently asked to move the runners over in front of Ivy Davis and Allee Bunker. She had five sacrifice-bunts to her credit. She also sacrificed her body in the field, showing a willingness to run through fences to take away home runs. The Oregon State signee hit .353 with eight doubles and three home runs. Burden, an Orange County senior All-Star selection, scored 22 runs and added 17 RBI as the Oilers’ every-day right-fielder.

Second Team

Brenna Alvis, Costa Mesa, SS, Sr.

Madeline Domingo, Fountain Valley, C, Sr.

Brittany Fraser, Los Amigos, P, Sr.

Leah Freeman, Newport Harbor, 3B, So.

Ryan King, Marina, C/3B, Sr.

Emily Kubisty, Estancia, SS, Jr.

Ashley Pilatos, Marina, LF, Jr.

Po Russ, Ocean View, C, Jr.

Haley Sheffner, Costa Mesa, P/OF, Jr.

Serena Starks, Edison, OF, So.

Riley Wester, Edison, CF, Sr.

Andrew.Turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner