One of the state’s top softball players this season, Episcopal School of Jacksonville junior Grace Jones has been voted the ITG Next Northeast Florida Female Athlete of the Year, sponsored by the Jacksonville Orthopaedic Institute.
Jones compiled 59.54% of the possible votes over a group of three additional finalists: Bolles cross county/track and field runner Jillian Candelino, Fleming Island flag football player Mykayla Maddox, and St. Johns Country Day basketball player Taliah Scott.
Jones, a Mercer commit, had a stellar season for an Eagles team that finished 22-5 overall and reached the Class 3A-Region 1 finals.
Jones posted a 22-5 record, along with a 1.02 ERA and 344:52 K:BB ratio across 171 IP. Holding opponents to a combined .135 AVG against, Jones she enjoyed 18 scoreless outings, as well as 20 games of double-digit strikeouts, headlined by a season-high 19 Ks on February 2. Her 344 strikeouts and 22 wins both ranked among the state’s leaders this season.
Offensively, Jones’ sample size at the plate didn’t equal her time in the circle, but the numbers were impressive all the same. In 27 games she slashed .605/.720/1.171 (46-for-76) with 6 HR, 22 RBI, and 10 SB, while also adding 13 doubles and 6 triples.
“She does it all, from being a captain on the team, to being an amazing pitcher and great hitter,” Episcopal head softball coach Kasse Eppley said. “You don’t really ever see stats defensively, but she’s a great defensive player too, and she makes plays. Most teams, because they’re not hitting her, will try to bunt, but she’s able to cover the bunt well from a pitcher’s position, which not all pitchers can say they do well.
“Overall, she’s done it in so many ways, from being a defensive player, to pitching and hitting,” Eppley added. “At the end of the season, nobody would pitch to her, which can be really frustrating as a hitter when we definitely need her bat on the field, but she is still able to keep her head on and pitch well. The impact she makes is huge.”
Jones’ 2023 season began with an outstanding month of February, a span that resulted in her being voted ITG Next Florida Female Athlete of the Month in March.
Looking ahead to next year, there is certainly the potential for Jones to equal her stellar 2023 season and perhaps even surpass it in some areas.
“Trying to not put it all on her shoulders,” Eppley said of what she wanted to see from Jones in 2024. “I think she tries to carry a lot of it, and that can be a little overwhelming, especially when she’s not given the opportunity to swing the bat when she’s intentionally walked. So, keeping her head and working on controlling what she can control instead of trying to do more than that.
“As a coach working with kids over the years, I feel like seniors in particular always put so much added pressure on themselves,” Eppley added. “I just want to see her have fun, love the game, enjoy the relationships she builds, continue to be a leader, and not try to be more than she is, because what she is is more than enough.”
Congratulations once again to Episcopal School of Jacksonville softball player Grace Jones, the ITG Next Northeast Florida Female Athlete of the Year sponsored by the Jacksonville Orthopaedic Institute, on a phenomenal 2023 season.
