Grayson Willoughby's high school career ended in storybook fashion. He and his teammates at Trinity High School in Louisville went back-to-back as state champions, finishing the season as one of the best prep teams in the country with a 41-3 overall record.
Willoughby also repeated as KHSAA State Tournament MVP, but that was not the biggest accolade he received. The 6-foot-2 right-hander was named Gatorade Player of the Year in Kentucky, Kentucky Mr. Baseball and also the National Player of the Year, according to MaxPreps.
It was a dominant season for the Kentucky commit. Willoughby posted a 0.67 ERA in 62.1 innings with 96 strikeouts over 13 games pitched. But it was the team's success he was most happy about.
"We kind of all, as a team, knew coming into this year there was going to be a lot of media, a lot of lights around us and a big target on our back, as there already is," Willoughby told Bat Cats Central. "But it's even bigger this year, and so just trying to handle one thing at a time. We didn't try to get ahead of ourselves too much. We kind of went after whatever was presented in front of us, and so when you're just doing that, you're able to kind of focus on that only and there's no outside noise that gets in.”
Join the hundreds of paying subscribers who support Bat Cats Central. We provide the most comprehensive, year-round coverage of Kentucky baseball on the Internet.
