NEWTON, N.C. — Becoming an all-time great is not an overnight reality in the sports world. It takes passion, dedication and often years of hard work to mold oneself into a promising athlete.
For some, it may not work out; while, others may attain just enough success to be included in the category of elite.
While the dust has settled with the prep softball season as it officially ended on June 1, Fred T. Foard High School graduate Riley Vogel proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was among the greatest hitters in North Carolina history.
A formidable all-state talent, she played in her final contest on May 16 in the state playoffs.
During her four-year prep career, she amassed a .630 batting average, which is third all-time in the state.
She collected 153 hits, which is tied for 27th in the all-time record books. Additionally, she garnered 38 doubles and 25 triples which ranks tied for 17th and in second-place all-time, respectively.
Vogel also obtained 79 RBI (runs batted in) for her career, along with 122 runs scored including seven home runs.
Diving into her roots, Vogel began showing interest in softball as a young kid, but she didn’t display full commitment until she began playing in the travel ball circuit. It didn’t hurt that this sport had somewhat of a family lineage.
“As a kid, softball stood out because I grew up around the sport,” she said. “I would watch my dad [Channon Vogel] coach [baseball] at Foard, and it was so much fun hanging around the field with the baseball team. I began playing travel ball when I was nine years old.
“My parents wanted me to play travel ball to help prepare me for middle and high school ball. I had also played basketball up until middle school but chose to pursue my softball career fully. When I was a high school freshman, I realized I could take my career to the next level. I loved everything about the game, especially when it came time to hit.”
Although her dad is the head coach for the Tigers varsity baseball team, Vogel said that she never felt pressure to compete. It came naturally to her from just being around the sport.
“I have [also] never felt pressured to excel in the sport [because of my dad],” she said. “I worked extremely hard growing up to be good at the sport, so there was never really pressure to begin with. I knew I worked hard behind the scenes, so I was confident to perform on the field.”
For Channon Vogel, he’s been extremely proud of seeing Riley’s successes as a father and as a coach.
“As coaches, we do not get to be a part of the entire journey of an athlete but merely share a small amount of time relative to their athletic career coaching and developing their skills until [it] is time to pass them along to the next coach,” he said. “As a father, you get to see the entire journey from the first time they pick up a ball or a bat until they hang up their cleats forever. The journey is not always easy and without sacrifice, but for us, it has been an amazing adventure filled with a lot of laughter, a few tears, and [a] lifetime of memories.”
She also shares this commonality with her little brother, AJ. He currently plays for their dad on the varsity baseball team, having participated in his freshman season this year. His level of play led to an all-conference and all-region nod.
Although she will be off to the collegiate level soon, she has shared a bit of advice for AJ as he navigates the world of prep athletics.
“I think the biggest advice that I’ve given him so far is to not worry or care about what other people think,” said Riley Vogel. “Being the coach’s son is not always the easiest. I want him to continue to be successful but not put pressure on himself by worrying about what other people think. People will always have something to say no matter what you do, but as long as he continues to work hard and remain humble he will be successful.”
Growing up, she participated in several positions on the field including shortstop and catcher. While attending Foard, most of her time was spent at the catcher position.
“Being a catcher has always resonated with me because my dad and my aunt were both catchers. Catching is something that has come naturally to me,” she said. “I could go without catching for a stretch and then go back there for a few innings like no time has passed. I’ve always been smoother behind the plate compared to other positions I’ve played.”
She cherished her time behind the plate, but nothing really beat the ability to step up at-bat and connect with the ball. This is something Vogel did at an elite level throughout her prep softball career.
Vogel proved to be a dynamic hitter right out of the gate as a freshman with the Lady Tigers, amassing a batting average of over .500. She corralled 24 hits which included three doubles and four triples. She scored 19 runs while earning 11 RBI during the shortened season in 2020-21.
This led to Vogel’s selection to the Northwestern Foothills 2A All-Conference team, along with her first appearance on the North Carolina Softball Coaches Association (NCSCA) All-District 7 2A and 2A All-State list.
Following up her solid freshman campaign, Vogel proved to be an even greater force during her sophomore year.
She tallied an outstanding .738 batting average for the season which included a career-high 48 hits, as well a career-best 14 doubles and four triples. She also garnered 13 RBI and 33 runs scored including a trio of home runs.
Her batting average still ranks as the 7th best in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association for a season.
Again, she achieved great individual accolades including the 2022 Western Foothills 3A Conference Co-Player of the Year Award, as well as becoming a NCSCA All-District 7 3A and 3A All-State selection. She also earned her first NCSCA All-District 7 3A Player of the Year nod.
While most athletes tend to be right-handed batters, Vogel said the fact that she is a lefty gives her an advantage when she hits.
“Left hitters are usually faster out of the box from home to first,” she said. “For me, being a fast lefty hitter who can also hit with power is kind of special. Especially when you can consistently hit with power backside.”
Due to the power of the swing, along with her other traits at-bat, Vogel only continued to exhibit her talent.
Vogel entered her junior campaign in 2023 with heavy momentum. She helped lead the Lady Tigers to a 15-5 overall finish and a second-place mark in the WFAC just behind East Lincoln at 12-2.
Although her batting average took a dip, she still maintained a high achieving .606 outing which included 43 hits, 26 RBI and 35 runs scored. She obtained 13 doubles and seven triples.
Foard finished its run with a second-round NCHSAA 3A West State Playoff exit at West Rowan, 14-1. Vogel went 2-for-3 at-bat and scored the team’s lone run after an RBI base hit from Karsyn Sigmon in the top of the third inning.
With a sour taste in its mouth in regard to how the season ended, the Lady Tigers rallied during its 2024 run.
Starting anew, Foard lost its first two contests; however, the Lady Tigers won its next eight encounters including a 4-3 extra innings victory over conference foe East Lincoln on April 8. Vogel finished 3-for-4 in this match-up as she collected the two-run dinger to pull out the win.
Vogel hit her first of four home runs during the 2024 season in the 10-3 loss against South Caldwell in Foard’s second game of the year.
She connected on her first triple of the season in the next game against rival Hickory on March 13. It would be the Lady Tigers’ first victory of the year in a 20-0 throttling. Vogel went on to secure a career-high 10 triples during her senior season.
The Lady Tigers finished the year with a 14-5 overall mark and 12-2 record in the WFAC, thus becoming conference champions. It was the program’s first and only conference crown with Vogel on the squad.
Her final prep softball contest with Foard came in a 1-0 loss to Kings Mountain during the third round of the NCHSAA 3A West state playoffs.
She went 1-for-3 in her final string of at-bats, collecting one of the team’s three hits on the night. She also earned one putout in one total chance while fielding for the last time. She obtained a .781 fielding percentage on the year including 24 putouts and one assist.
In addition to Vogel, the Lady Tigers had a slew of up-and-comers leading the way at-bat including Livi Queen, Alexis Stuebe, Mattie Leonhardt and the aforementioned Karsyn Sigmon.
Queen, Stuebe and Sigmon, who were sophomores this year, paced the Lady Tigers in the batter’s box just behind Vogel. All three athletes were all-conference, all-district and all-state selections in 2024.
Queen finished with a .468 batting average while Sigmon accrued a .459 average. Stuebe rounded out the trio with a .413 mark. Leonhardt, who was a freshman, earned a .379 batting average. Leonhardt earned an all-conference nod for her work.
Sigmon finished 13-4 in 19 appearances on the pitcher’s mound. She struck out 122 batters and allowed a 1.23 earned run average (ERA). This led to back-to-back NCSCA All-District 7 3A Pitcher of the Year awards.
As for Vogel, she led Foard in several statistical categories. She notched a .633 batting average while garnering 38 hits, 35 total runs, eight doubles and 29 RBI. She also achieved a .676 on-base percentage.
Following her final season, Vogel became a 3-time NCSCA All-District 7 3A Player of the Year and a 4-time all-district selection on June 19. She went on to become a 4-time NCSCA All-State talent, as well, with her final nod in this category announced on June 26.
She said that, as a freshman, she really did not know what any of those awards meant. Now that she’s able to look back, she is extremely humbled and proud to have received all of those accolades.
“I am going to miss being a Tiger,” she said. “There is something so fulfilling about playing for your hometown high school team. I’m gonna miss all of the girls and will cherish the memories I’ve made. I will especially miss the FCA huddles the team did together. Some of the younger players I am especially gonna miss are Livi Queen and Karysn Sigmon. They are two very talented ball players with huge futures whom I look forward to keeping in touch with.”
In between seasons at Foard, Vogel stayed poised by competing in the travel ball circuit, most notably for the nationally ranked Team North Carolina organization under head coach Brad Huss.
She has competed for Team NC 18U Huss at the catcher position. The team is based out of Lincolnton and consists of athletes who graduated in 2024 and will do so in 2025.
Vogel most recently competed for Team NC 18U Huss at the Diamond Classic Showcase in Spartanburg from June 21-23. The program finished as the bracket champions at the showcase. In the final match-up of the event on June 23, Vogel finished 1-for-2 in an 8-2 victory over Batbusters Bailey.
She then went on to play in her last set of games for Team NC, ending her travel ball career during the Great Smoky Showcase at Bob Lewis Ballpark in Buncombe County, NC, from June 29-30.
Team NC went 4-0 during the showcase. Vogel finished 1-for-3 in her travel ball finale against Williamsburg Starz Gold Ellis. Team NC collected the 13-0 victory in four innings.
In addition to her travel ball schedule, she has also spent time in her family’s footsteps as an instructor for the Athletes Lab Performance Center in Maiden.
“I have been working for Athletes Lab for almost three years now,” she said. “I started instructing maybe a year ago. While not only working at the facility, but also hitting and training there, people would start to notice me and my talent. I started to get parents coming up to me asking if I do lessons and, with my boss Grant Rembert’s permission, I started instructing.
“At first, it wasn’t easy but I slowly started to get better at it, and it became natural. After my softball career is over, I see myself coaching and instructing younger girls. I enjoy it, and it’s a way I can give back to the game I love.”
Vogel’s father, Channon Vogel, said that he believes she would make an excellent coach for aspiring athletes, and that he would be extremely proud to call her ‘coach.’
When it comes to the continuation of her softball career, Vogel officially signed her letter of intent in Nov. 2023, to play at the University of South Carolina Upstate under head coach Chris Hawkins.
Before committing to USC Upstate, she considered offers from Mars Hill University (NC), Erskine College (SC) and Francis Marion University (SC).
“I have never been the biggest player on the field, so having people underestimate me has been my biggest motivation. No matter what, my parents have always taught me to work hard, control what I can control, and always remain humble and kind. Going into Upstate, the biggest thing I will take with me is my Faith. My Faith in God has been my firm foundation on and off the field.
“My goal is to have a successful career at Upstate. I especially want to have a successful batting career. I need to work in some areas defensively, but I am confident in my abilities and in my coaches going forward. No matter what happens at Upstate, I know that only the top few percent of athletes make it to the next level and only a small percentage of those athletes go to play Division I, so regardless of what happens, I am extremely proud and humbled for this opportunity. Go Spartans!”
