Gibbs standout Lacey Keck is the 5Star Preps Softball Player of the Year (2024), presented by KOC.
BY MIKE BLACKERBY
Do-it-all Lacey Keck had quite the season for Gibbs High School in 2024.
The standout pitcher had a junior year to remember, leading the Lady Eagles to their first state championship in seven years and earning recognition as the 5Star Preps Softball Player of the Year.
And Keck was at her very best at the state Class AAA tournament in Murfreesboro in late May as Gibbs swept past four consecutive opponents by an average of seven runs per game.
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“Lacey is awesome,” said Gibbs coach Carol Mitchell after her team knocked off Carter 6-1 in the state championship game at MTSU’s stadium.
“There were only three or four runs scored on us the whole week … just awesome.”
A check of Gibbs’ four box scores during the state tournament embellishes Mitchell’s summation of Keck’s play in Murfreesboro.
Just look at what she did on the mound.
Keck pitched four compete game victories for the Lady Eagles.
She allowed just three earned runs while striking out a total of 21 hitters and walking six.
At the plate, Keck batted .500 for the state tournament.
She was 8 for 16 with nine RBI.
Keck and the Lady Eagles closed with a rush in 2024, catching fire after a slow start – albeit in large part due to a schedule Mitchell called one of the toughest in her lengthy career.
Gibbs (33-12) won 21 of its final 23 games on the way to its 11th state championship in program history.
“We got off to a rough start this year, but we definitely clicked toward the end,” said Keck, who has committed to Carson-Newman University.
“At the beginning of the season we really weren’t working together as a team,” continued Keck.
“But the (thing about) the Gibbs program is we work really hard.”
Keck said the direction of Mitchell, who has won more than 1,000 games in her career and has been recognized as one of the top coaches in the nation, was key this season.
“A lot of people just see her when she gets mad, but if we didn’t have somebody like her who pushes me like she does I wouldn’t be where I’m at.”
And where Keck ended up at the end of the championship season was pretty special.
She finished with a 31-10 pitching mark and a 1.91 ERA.
Keck recorded 38 complete games with eight shutouts.
She fanned 226 hitters in 248.2 innings of work.
At the plate, Keck upped her batting average by almost 100 percentage points over her sophomore season.
She hit for a .482 average with three home runs, 18 doubles and 54 RBI.
“This year I really feel like I got better at the plate,” said Keck.
“You just have to have confidence at the plate, and this year I felt like I did.”
Going into her senior season, Keck has 92 career victories with the Lady Eagles.
She’s optimistic Gibbs can make a solid run at back-to-back state championships as the Lady Eagles return several keys players.
“Repeating will take a lot of our time and determination,” said Keck.
“We have to work together as a team from the start and have chemistry on and off the field.”