Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Bailey Brown

By Ray Hamill — Eureka seniors Bailey Brown and Macy Secor closed out their high school careers this week, as the Loggers reached the semifinals of the North Coast Section Division-5 softball playoffs.

The Loggers were the last remaining local team in the section postseason and the two influential seniors each played a key role in what was a memorable turnaround campaign for the program.

And that makes them our choice for Humboldt Sports Athletes of the Week.

Brown, who will play softball at College of the Redwoods next year, enjoyed four standout seasons with the Loggers and walks away as a two-time Lakin tournament winner, having also been victorious as a freshman.

This spring she led her team in batting with a .422 average.

She also had 22 RBIs and team-highs in doubles (14) and home runs (three).

Secor, meanwhile, played two years with the Loggers and made her presence felt in more ways than one.

Like Brown, Secor was a valuable team leader this year, while also impressing with her play at the plate.

She batted .402, which was second only to Brown on this year’s team, and drove in a team-high 27 runs.

Secor, who also had 12 doubles, will also play at CR next year, although she will be playing volleyball for the local community college.

Macy Secor

The St. Bernard’s Crusaders

Our team of the week honors, meanwhile, go to St. Bernard’s baseball.

The Crusaders also were the last remaining H-DNL baseball team in this year’s NCS playoffs and hosted Newark Memorial in the Division-4 semifinals on Wednesday.

And while it was wasn’t the team’s best performance of the spring, the SB boys enjoyed a big season as a young squad came together quicker than anticipated.

Under the guidance of head coach Matt Tomlin, a Crusaders team that included just three seniors on a roster of 20 went 22-5, including a perfect 12-0 run in the Little 4.

The seniors — Luke Brunton, Tyler Hinrichs and Michael Manzi — all played huge roles on this year’s team and will be tough to replace, but the 14 freshmen and sophomores on the squad all contributed and gained some valuable experience.

And that should make the Crusaders a dangerous prospect for the rest of the H-DNL over the next few years.