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Taryn Miller still an obvious leader for JB


Sitting on the sidelines watching a James Buchanan softball game, one voice can be heard above all others.

Taryn Miller leads JB's pre-game cheer: "Rockets on three, Rockets- on three! One, two, three!" And on the field, there's rarely a moment when you can't hear her commands or encouraging words.

"She's very vocal," fellow senior Nina Shatzer said. "She keeps our heads in the game, and lets us know where we're supposed to be on the field all the time. She really keeps us in it."

For the last three years, Miller has been a star pitcher for JB - even making a case for herself as last year's Player of the Year despite missing a number of games due to injury. A Robert Morris commit, Miller is not risking re-injury, so she won't be pitching this season.

But that doesn't mean she's any less important to the Rockets.

"She's a senior, she's been here for four years, and she's helped us win a lot of ball games," JB coach Troy Pittman said. "I don't want to say we're leaning on her, because we're leaning on all the season. Her role has kind of changed, and she's doing a very good job of being a leader."

Other teams are noticing, too.

"Taryn Miller - her leadership is probably untouched through the division," Northern York coach Kurt Kluck said. "I think she could probably carry them quite a long way herself."

Miller will serve as the Rockets' starting shortstop - the position she plans to play in college and one of the most crucial defensive spots - and she also continues to have a hot bat. Against the Polar Bears, she had just one hit - but it was a double. She finished 1-for-3 with a walk, two runs scored and an RBI.

And that was just Game One.