Allegany's Pittman wins Player of Year for 2nd time
Oct. 20—CUMBERLAND, Md. — When Kyra Pittman was first voted Player of the Year, the then-freshman went all-out trying to prove she belonged. Three years later, she proved she's still the best.
Pittman checked all the boxes. Team success? The Allegany Campers returned to the 1A state championship game for the first time since 2017. Individual success? Pittman dominated in the circle with a 12-1 record, 0.64 ERA and struck out 147 batters in 76 innings.
It was no surprise when the area's coaches voted Pittman the 2021 Player of the Year.
"It's a great honor that I really wasn't expecting," said Pittman, who will be playing softball at the University of Maryland in the spring. "I've been busy with college and getting prepared for that, and knowing that I'm Player of the Year from my hometown really warms my heart.
"The first time I really tried super hard to prove myself because I was just a freshman. Being a senior, I still had to work extremely hard to keep the respect, the title. It was a non-stop grind that I ended up working through."
Pittman received five of the nine votes, and Allegany teammate Samara Funk, Alexa Shoemaker of Keyser, Remi Hinkle of Moorefield and Ariana Herrera of Bishop Walsh received one vote each.
"I always thought the intangibles are what set her apart," Allegany head coach Brian Miller said. "She was just so determined and selfless, and I think when you put that together with the incredible talent she has, that's how she put up the numbers she put up.
"For a first-year coach, when you have great pitcher like Kyra, it makes your job easy. And when you have a self-motivated kid, she'll always be prepared and put in the extra time to be prepared."
The right-handers' numbers weren't too far off her freshman marks, when she compiled a 16-1 record with 97 1/3 innings pitched, 167 strikeouts and a 0.72 ERA.
This time around, Pittman wasn't sneaking up on the area. She had a target on her back, and she worked hard to join Carlie Lewis, Shari Beavers, Cari Reed and Jennifer Bosley as multi-time Player of the Year winners.
"I definitely got stronger with my movement pitches," Pittman said "I worked on different techniques to throw harder with my mechanics.
"I was an underclassman, and I was looking up to so many older girls. Me, now getting it as a senior, I had a bunch of younger girls looking up to me. I was trying to set an example as a good role model of what they can work toward."
At the biggest stage of the season, when No. 2 Allegany hosted No. 3 Cambridge-South Dorchester in the state semifinals at Lions Field, Pittman was up to the challenge.
Pittman out-dueled a fellow Division 1 softball prospect, Madison Pleasants (Marist), fanning 14 hitters and allowing just two hits in a complete-game shutout.
In the state title game in Glen Burnie, Pittman notched an RBI double for the Campers' lone tally in a 4-1 loss to Patterson Mill. In the circle, the senior allowed one earned run on six hits with eight strikeouts in six innings pitched.
At the plate this year, Pittman batted .387 with two home runs, five doubles and 10 RBIs.
Despite her gaudy statistics in the circle, Pittman wasn't always at 100% throughout the regular season.
Because COVID pushed back the spring campaign, summer travel ball overlapped with the high school softball season. On the weekends, Pittman would compete in tournaments for the Tri-State Thunder and then return home to toss a complete game for Alco during the week.
"It was definitely a struggle," Pittman said. "It was a really good challenge that I faced. It was nice to have that challenge to push me a little harder."
It took a toll on her velocity at times, and in some instances, the senior was seen stretching out her tired arm on the circle between pitches, but it didn't matter. Representing the blue and white, and competing alongside her teammates, was just as important.
"I have pride for my school," Pittman said. "I have pride in my hometown, and the best way to represent my hometown is to participate in sports and activities and represent the area."
In three matchups against cross-town rival Fort Hill, one in the playoffs and two in the regular season, Pittman didn't disappoint.
The first game was a highly anticipated bout at Lions Field, as fans lined the boundaries to see the undefeated Campers and Sentinels square off.
Pittman struck out 15, walked none and allowed just one hit in a seven-inning shutout. In the rematch at Washington Middle, the senior fireballer fanned 13 in seven innings pitched on three hits.
After surrendering a first-inning run, Pittman retired 19 of the final 21 hitters to help Allegany sweep the season series.
But the teams would meet one more time in the 1A West championship game, and unfortunately for Fort Hill, Pittman was on nine days rest.
The hard-throwing right-hander had a noticeable increase in velocity, and she was untouchable, allowing just one hit and fanning 13 hitters in five innings to advance the Campers to the state quarterfinal. The ball never left the infield.
Pittman joins fellow Allegany softball players Shanel Stott (2017), Tori Bohrer (2015), Hayley Stankan (2011), Beth Szymanski (2010) and Kelsey Smith (2007) as Player of the Year winners.
For a program that's had so much success in the past 15 years, Pittman is the only Camper so far to win the top honor twice.
Now, Pittman readies for a new challenge at Maryland, where she'll try to crack the Terps' rotation as a freshman under second-year head coach Mark Montgomery.
Pittman is confident her time as an Allegany Camper prepared her for that.
"Having competition in the area, and knowing that there are so many people wanting to knock me down, that has definitely helped my competitiveness," Pittman said. "And that's helped me compete with other pitchers are Maryland."
"I think she'll do really well at Maryland," Miller said. "She might be the most mature kid I've ever coached. I know she'll graduate, and I think she'll play at Maryland too."
Alex Rychwalski is a sports reporter at the Cumberland Times-News. Follow him on Twitter @arychwal.
