A three-year starter on the Gans High School softball team, junior Brianna Burris has moved into a leadership role for her team this year-something that her coach James Henry saw coming early on.

“I knew from the time she was a freshman that she would eventually be our team leader when the older girls ahead of her graduated and now that time has come. She’s my right hand in all the stuff we do. She handles communication with the team and helps keep them in line, on task and focused. She’s always got a positive attitude whether things are going good or not so much. She won’t tell anyone to do something that she’s not willing to do herself and if people aren’t coming along like they should be, she’ll get after them and get them moving in the right direction,” said Henry.

In addition to softball, Brianna also plays basketball for the Lady Grizzlies and this year will throw the discus in track and while she has played softball since she was little, she admits that basketball is slowly becoming her favorite sport and has a highlight from each sport that she remembers vividly.

“In softball I’ll always remember hitting my first homerun my freshman year and in basketball I scored 22 points in a game this season which was great.”

Versatility is a big part of Brianna’s success according to Henry.

“In slow pitch, she has played shortstop though last year we moved her to the outfield and in fast pitch she’s really our main pitcher, so we really rely on her. She’s a good hitter for average and can play just about any position.”

In basketball, Brianna says she can also play just about any position on the court. She’s also got special people in her life that play a part in her success.

“My dad and Nana really motivate me and are always pushing me to do better. My mom has been a big help in my leadership abilities.”

One of her main goals this year is to improve her hitting and she has spent a lot of time taking extra batting practice in order to achieve that goal.