Jocelyn Luft claims to be the analytical one. Jayelyn Luft is her free-spirited twin sister.
But long before the fraternal siblings were impactful freshmen stacking wins on the Hempfield softball team, they were stacking … pillows? And Jayelyn was the mind behind the operation.
“When they were 2, Jaye used to get out of her crib,” said their mother, Tina Madison, Hempfield’s head coach. “She would use pillows for Joce to crawl out with her.”
The twins have come a long way from their baby jailbreak days. Now a picture of rapid growth, they work together to help Hempfield stay on brand as a powerhouse.
The girls will try to win a WPIAL championship together this week when the top-seeded Spartans (20-1) take on No. 2 Seneca Valley (15-5) in the Class 6A title game at Cal (Pa.)’s Lilley Field.
While most of the Hempfield team will go for a repeat — and the program’s WPIAL record-tying 10th title — the Lufts will try to win their first.
Youngsters who shadowed girls they revered just a few years ago, the pair has merged flawlessly into the starting nine, providing offense, defense and pitching while giving an already good team an instant upgrade.
“I am so excited for this game,” said Jocelyn Luft, a second baseman who leads the team with a .515 batting average. “We have played hundreds and hundreds of games at a high level, so I don’t feel nervous going in. We want to win for the seniors.”
The twins don’t look much alike, but they have looked the part as players from the first pitch at Hempfield, proving they belong in their initial go-round at the varsity level.
“I remember watching (the WPIAL final) five years ago and seeing Lou (Lauren Howard) and thinking, ‘I want to be her,’” Jayelyn Luft said. “Did I think I could have this kind of impact? No, but I hoped I did. It’s always been a goal to win a championship.”
How good have the Lufts been? Good enough for a Penn State assistant coach to come watch them play in Tuesday’s semifinal win over Canon-McMillan at West Mifflin.
No. 12 Jayelyn Luft is a 5-foot-11 left-handed slap hitter who also pitches. While she has a team-high 38 hits and 77 at-bats (.515), she is also 4-0 in the circle with a microscopic 0.65 ERA in 14 relief appearances, hitting upwards of 65 mph on the gun.
The hard-hitting, 5-7 Jocelyn Luft, whose jersey number matches her team’s winning streak (18), has 22 RBIs, which ranks fourth behind seniors Howard (29), Ella Berkebile (24) and Claire Mitchell (24).
“I have never felt like, ‘Oh my gosh,’ when I got here,” Jocelyn Luft said. “We fit right in. Something about this team just feels comfortable.”
The girls have been playing softball as far back as they can remember. It has become the lifeblood of their relationship, a bond that has been strengthened by their play as high school rookies who often look like seasoned veterans.
Their mother, an accomplished pitcher at Hempfield and Penn State, did not force the girls into softball, but she humbly appreciates their accolades and supports their drive to want to play in college.
“We tried dance and cheerleading, but it was boring and I didn’t like it,” Jayelyn Luft said. “And I did all the other sports. But I liked softball the best.”
Their varnished look on the field is a product of repetition.
The Lufts have played thousands of games at the travel and youth levels in more than a dozen states, winning numerous tournaments and reaching the Little League World Series in 2024. They work with hitting and pitching coaches, and take part in strength and performance training.
“They work at it,” Madison said. “It’s an all-year thing. We’ve tried to create a winning culture. Winning is what they know. Losing is uncomfortable to them. It’s nice to think a college coach can look out and see this Division I girl and that Division I girl and see (the twins) are right there with them.”
The girls’ stepfather, Bob Madison, said he is not surprised to see them performing so well at a high level.
“I’m happy for them,” said Madison, who is also Hempfield’s girls basketball coach. “I know how long they have looked forward to wearing a Hempfield uniform. They work incredibly hard to be the best they can. That’s what most don’t see or understand. They didn’t just wake up and become good ballplayers. They have worked incredibly hard for many years to get where they’re at.”
For as similar as their impact has been on the field, the girls are equally different off it.
“A lot different. She loves movies and reading. I love math and studying,” Jocelyn Luft said. “We share clothes sometimes, but we have different styles.
“We listen to different kinds of music,” Jayelyn Luft said.
Said their mother: “Joce is like Barbie and Jaye is more like Avril Lavigne.”
They share a bedroom and Madison said they manage to keep it squeaky clean. While they try not to bring softball home with them all the time, they do offer encouragement and criticism for one another, interrupting their normal sibling rivalry.
“She’ll me I should have swung at a pitch when I didn’t,” Jayelyn Luft said. “We talk about what we could have done better. I hate losing.
“I just hope she doesn’t pass me up (in height).”
Their biological father, Dave Luft, is 6-5.
That they actually take each other’s advice is up for debate.
“Yeah, sure we do,” Jocelyn said with a slight eye roll. “We support each other but we fight, too. We like to compete.”
Late legendary coach Bob Kalp, who Madison replaced in 2021 after his retirement, used to say he was anxious to see how good Madison’s daughters could be.
Kalp died in March at age 80.
“I feel like he would be their biggest fans,” Madison said. “I really wish he’d been able to see them play.”