Hayfield's double vision
By Jason Devaney
Hayfield softball coach Ron Giovannucci has a lot to be thankful for this season.
He's got a solid arm in pitcher Jennifer Windau. Catcher Kelsey Talbot does a good job behind the plate, while Sarah Marino and Barbara Eck set the table in the top two spots in the order.
And he's got a pair of twins guarding the very important middle infield positions, two freshmen that have brought the Hawks to new heights in 2008.
"It's nice to have both of them like that," said the coach, whose team is 12-2-1 overall and 8-2 in the Patriot District. "They're dedicated players and they have excellent mechanics, batting and in the field, and excellent attitudes. They always come to practice, always ready to go. I just can't say enough about them."
He is talking about Megan and Samantha Perry-Shifflett, and he could not be more correct.
Megan, who admitted her other half was born first, plays second base and occasionally pitches. Samantha said she plays third base on her club team, but is a shortstop in the Hawks' system. She also sits behind the plate when her sister is on the mound.
And when we say they are twins, we mean twins. The girls are pretty much identical, with their red hair and black-rimmed glasses. The most distinguishing feature – at least at Friday night's game with T.C. Williams – was their hairstyle. Megan had one braid, while her sister had two.
"It's actually really fun playing with my sister," Samantha said. "Every time I mess up, she fixes it. She helps me fix it, she tells me what I did wrong. Playing without her would be weird; it's my sister and if I played on a different team, that would be really hard."
The pair, whose birthday happens to be July 4, started on the diamond when they were 5 years old. They played Tee-ball then, and eventually moved up to the Fairfax Blue Jays softball team when they were 9. The Perry-Shiffletts are still members of the Blue Jays, playing in the summer, fall and winter before joining up with their high school team in the spring.
Megan was asked how it feels to share the field with her twin.
"I can't imagine playing without her," she said. "If she quit, I would have to quit. [Samantha piped in, saying, 'I would never quit.'] We've been playing together for the longest time and I can't imagine playing without her. It's so much fun."
Aside from playing crucial roles in the field, the twins are getting it done with their bats, too. Megan hits cleanup and sports about a .575 average with a team-high 18 RBIs. Samantha, who admitted is in a slump, is hitting a few clicks under .400 with a .480 on-base percentage. She batted seventh in Friday's game, a contest that was called after 4 1/2 innings because of the mercy rule; Hayfield won, 20-0.
"It's a nice combination to have them in the middle infield," Giovannucci surmised. "It's just a pleasure to coach them, I like having them out there. I didn't have that last year; that was my weaker spot, out there in the middle. It really makes our team solid."