The Day’s All-Area Softball Player of the Year: Old Lyme’s Emma Bayor

July 05, 2023 11:16 pm • Last Updated: July 07, 2023 8:52 am

By Vickie Fulkerson
Day Sports Editor

Old Lyme High School junior Emma Bayor was named a Class S all-state selection and the Shoreline Conference Pitcher of the Year after leading the Wildcats to a 19-4 record. Bayor, who was 17-4 with a 0.58 earned run average and 261 strikeouts, was named The Day’s 2023 All-Area Softball Player of the Year. (Dana Jensen/The Day)
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Old Lyme junior Emma Bayor batted .431 with five homers and 26 RBI while also being named the Shoreline Conference Pitcher of the Year, going 17-4 with three no-hitters and 261 strikeouts in 132.1 innings. A Class S all-state selection, Bayor has already signed to play at the Division I level at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. (Sarah Gordon/The Day)
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Of all the teams in the Shoreline Conference, including eight-time defending league champion North Branford and Class S state tournament runner-up Cromwell, Emma Bayor stood above the rest as the Shoreline’s Pitcher of the Year.

Old Lyme High School softball coach Tim Gavin, who gets to write Bayor’s name on his lineup card every day, repeats what he said in a newspaper article about his junior pitcher earlier in the season.

“They asked me some things about Emma and I said, ‘We’ve got Emma and they don’t.’ That’s my synopsis,” Gavin said. “She kept us in a lot of games and won us a few at the plate.

“She’s a tireless worker. On the days we have off, she goes and throws or she goes and hits. She trains all year round. She puts the time in. She’s throwing or she’s hitting or she’s doing something. That piece is probably what stands out.”

A further synopsis: A Class S all-state pick this season, Bayor was 17-4 with a 0.58 earned run average, pitching her way to nine shutouts and three no-hitters. She struck out 261 and walked 41 in 132.1 innings, allowing batters an average of .128.

She also hit .431 with five homers among her 15 extra-base hits with 26 RBI and 31 runs scored. Because of the danger she presents at the plate, Bayor drew 21 walks, giving her an on-base percentage of .588.

For her career, Bayor, who has committed to play softball at Division I Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., has a record of 34-12 with 502 strikeouts and is batting .417 over the course of three seasons with 12 homers and 68 RBI.

Bayor, who led Old Lyme to a 19-4 mark, was named The Day’s 2023 All-Area Softball Player of the Year.

“Me and my dad (Ed) used to practice all the time at the field next to my house,” Bayor said. “We used to practice almost every day after school. He’s still my catcher for every single one of my practices.

“It’s kind of like peaceful, kind of like an escape almost from school and stuff and I get to spend time with my dad. It can get difficult sometimes with school, tests, homework; I find pitching to be a calming thing, like meditating only physical.”

Bayor remembers watching former Old Lyme pitchers Kassidy Standish (Class of 2021) and Victoria Gage (Class of 2022) when she was younger — “I wanted to be them so badly,” she said.

Bayor takes pitching lessons from Lauren Person at USA Elite in Cheshire and she plays during the summer for the Connecticut Charmers 16U team.

Gavin calls Bayor’s pitches at Old Lyme, labeling her a “very coachable kid.”

“One thing about Emma I feel she has over a lot of pitchers, everything is the same (motion) as her fastball, as her riseball. She does a great job delivering her changeup,” Gavin said. “She is really, really tough.”

“Honestly, it’s just repetition, doing things over and over again,” Bayor said. “I think I’ve learned to trust myself. Freshman year I didn’t have much confidence. It’s natural to me now having confidence in myself.”

Marist began to recruit Bayor in the fall, making her immediately feel welcome, and it didn’t take her long to commit. With her ultimate goal of becoming a physician assistant, she plans to do her undergraduate work at Marist before taking advantage of the school’s PA program.

The Red Foxes won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament title this year to earn an NCAA tournament berth.

Bayor said she was recruited as a pitcher, but she still enjoys hitting. This season, she launched a home run over the 12-foot high fence in center field at Haddam-Killingworth, what is believed to be the first ball to clear that fence since 1984.

Competing in indoor track during the winter, Bayor was second in the Shoreline meet in the shot put with a personal-best 30 feet, 9.5 inches. She also enjoys reading and plans to spend the summer playing for the Charmers and working at summer softball camps.

“She’s matured a lot,” Gavin said of Bayor. “When she started, she was a thrower and she started becoming a pitcher. She’s now definitely a pitcher and she’s only a junior. Our league has some pretty good pitching in it, for her to win Pitcher of the Year in the Shoreline ... she had a very, very good year.”

v.fulkerson@theday.com