Matthew Knaub: Exeter senior Haley Speicher named Berks Softball Player of the Year

Matthew Knaub, Reading Eagle, Pa.
·2 min read

May 23—Exeter senior Haley Speicher was named the Berks Softball Player of the Year on Monday, as selected through of vote of the league's coaches.

A shortstop and team captain, Speicher helped lead the Eagles to the Berks title with a 4-2 win over Brandywine Heights in the championship game. Exeter (18-2) won Berks I with an 11-1 record and earned the No. 1 seed in the District 3 Class 5A playoffs.

Speicher is a three-time selection on the All-Berks team. She also made it as a freshman in 2019. There was no season or team in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Berks Catholic's Mike Smith was named the Coach of the Year after guiding the Saints to their first county playoff victory in school history — a 6-2 win over Kutztown in the quarterfinals. Berks Catholic (14-4) finished second in Berks II with a 10-2 record and made its first county playoff appearance since 2015.

The Eagles had three players named to the All-Berks team, the most of any team in the league. Junior Morgan Herb and senior Taylor Mentzer joined Speicher as All-Berks selections.

A pitcher, Herb went 13-1 with four shutouts, including three victories in the Berks playoffs. Mentzer, a center fielder, also played a major role in Exeter's county playoff run, hitting the walk-off RBI single in the eighth inning of the Eagles' 6-5 semifinal victory over Twin Valley before going 2-for-3 with an RBI triple and a run in the championship game.

The only other team with multiple All-Berks selections was Kutztown with senior second baseman Ryleigh Bohning and senior center fielder Caitlyn Lubak. The Cougars (16-5) won Berks IV with a 9-2 record and made their 15th consecutive county playoff appearance.

Oley Valley senior pitcher Cassidy Drobek was named to the All-Berks team for the second straight year, joining Speicher as the only repeat selections.

Also making the 11-player All-Berks team: Fleetwood senior catcher/second baseman Megan Brattley, Brandywine Heights senior third baseman Jadyn Richardson, Twin Valley senior center fielder Natali Foster, Hamburg sophomore pitcher Hailey Strunk and Gov. Mifflin junior shortstop/pitcher Sophia Schmehl.