James Wood's Rosso, King to play for Division I schools

By WALT MOODY | The Winchester Star

Nov 15, 2017

WINCHESTER — James Wood High School’s Rene Rosso already was competing in six events during the high school track season, so why not add one more in college.

The Colonels’ Lauren King admits she had to learn how to pronounce the school where her softball career was heading.

Each landed Division I scholarships offers, which they cashed in on Tuesday. Rosso signed a National Letter of Intent with Mount St. Mary’s College (Emmitsburg, Md.) and King did the same with Quinnipiac (Hamden, Conn.) in a ceremony at the school’s library.

Rosso, who estimates she will have 88 percent of college costs covered from her athletic and academic scholarships, is looking to compete in the heptathlon at Mt. St. Mary’s, a school renowned for its prowess in the event.

The heptathlon consists of seven events (100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 meters, long jump, javelin and 800) that are competed in over two days.

Rosso is no stranger to excelling in many events. In the Class 4 state championships last year, Ross was third in the triple jump, fourth in the 100 hurdles, fifth in the 300 hurdles, sixth in the long jump and tied for sixth in the high jump. She broke school marks in the 300 hurdles and triple jump.

That performance got the attention of Mt. St. Mary’s Jay Phillips, who returned to his alma mater to coach track & field in 2015. Phillips, who coaches the team’s heptathletes, began corresponding with Rosso over the summer.

Rosso, who was also considering High Point, liked what she saw and heard.

“I think it probably came down to I really liked the coach at Mt. St. Mary’s a lot,” said Rosso. “I feel like I’ve already bonded with him and the season hasn’t started.

“I liked that there was a heptathlon coach there. It wasn’t that there was a bunch of random coaches. I’m going to be working with him all of the time.”

Rosso said she became interested in the heptathlon thanks to her former coach Matt Stegmaier, who left the Colonels program after last season.

“I didn’t know what it was, but then Stegs my coach was like reading off all of the events,” Rosso recalled. “I was like, ‘Fun, fun, this is awesome, great, fun.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, I want to do that. It sounds like a blast.’

“In between each event you get a half-hour break, which I think is great. When I’m at a track meet and I have to do six events, it’s like boom, boom, boom. They all overlap each other. I think it’s going be a little easier.”

Stegmaier said Ross is the perfect fit for the event.

“She was born with God-given ability,” he said. “She’s so coachable and she listens really well. She’s got that work ethic that can’t be coached. … She was born with the ability to do a lot of stuff and she was willing to learn and progress.”

Still, the heptathlon will take a skill set that Rosso has used rarely.

“They had me do throwing at dual meets last year and I’m not that great at it,” Rosso said. “I can get better at it. Everything in the heptathlon sounds great except for the 800. That’s going to be the one that kills me.”

Stegmaier has no doubts Rosso will succeed.

“We fiddled around with the shot put last year, just to give her an idea,” he said. “I’d like to work with her in the javelin because she will have to end up throwing that. She’s just got the ability. Any event that she does, she’s excelling at. With any of the new stuff, she’ll be fine there at the Division I level.”

She already seems primed to help the Mountaineers. Several of her performances in the VHSL meet would have netted points for the Mountaineers in the Northeast Conference meet.

“I didn’t know I was that good,” Rosso said of the comparison.

Aside from the heptathlon (which she’ll compete in about three times during the season), she’ll be involved in other events.

Rosso has yet to pick her major but is leaning toward something related to psychology.

King brings a powerful arm to Quinnipiac, which wasted no time in offering her a full scholarship.

The right-hander had considered Boston College before the Bobcats came into the picture.

“I didn’t know how to pronounce it, like a lot of other people,” King said with a chuckle. “It really became the No. 1 school for me.

“I committed the summer before my junior year, but it started at the beginning of that year. I went to a combine and they saw me pitch. That was the first time they saw me and they pretty much offered me right away.”

King said the program had plenty to offer, especially a cozy campus.

“The moment that I stepped on campus, I just knew it was the right fit for me,” she said. “… I think it was just the feel of the campus. I know one of the things that was really awesome is that when you step on the field you get this beautiful view of Sleeping Giant State Park from home plate. It was just beautiful.”

Bobcats coach Jill Karwoski, who will be in her fifth season this spring, is looking for some help to turn around the program. The Bobcats have not had a winning campaign since 2012. They went 23-27 last season, including 9-11 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. They did not qualify for the conference tournament.

King, whose fastball hums in the low to mid 60-mph range, certainly could be what Quinnipiac is looking for. Last year, she went 10-1 with a 1.41 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 791/3 innings for the Colonels. She also tied a team record with a .500 batting average and earned The Winchester Star’s Player of the Year honor.

James Wood coach Todd Baker says he is not surprised with King’s success.

“She is just a great athlete,” Baker said. “On top of that, you’ve got to have a big heart and have got to work hard. She’s always done that. She plays year-round. That’s what you’ve got to do. You’re not born that way. You become that by hard work.

“There’s not a ceiling for her. She’ll do well at the Division I level. I fully expect that she’ll keep getting better and better. She’ll probably contribute as a freshman there and throughout her four years of college.”

King already has a couple of new pitches she has added to her repertoire to prepare for the next level.

“I’ve grown as pitcher over the past year,” she said. “I’ve added a riseball and my dropball and changeup have gotten a lot better. They’re looking for a riseball because if I can work up the ladder with it then I can pretty much stop any hitter.”

When she’s not in the circle for the Bobcats, King would love a chance to hit and play third base. She drove in 25 runs last season for the Colonels (18-5).

King will major in radiology at the school.

“I started taking anatomy this year, but I was always interested in [radiology],” she said. “I heard they really have a good health science program and separate radiology department so I decided to apply.”

While she’s looking forward to her senior season in helping the Colonels challenge for a Northwestern District and state title, King hopes she can help the Bobcats win, too.

“I’m so excited to be a part of the team and help advance the program and put Quinnipiac on the map more.”