STEPPING UP TO THE PLATE
6/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball
June 21, 2006
One pitch.
One strike.
One could argue that one strike stood between the UT Arlington softball team and a return to the NCAA Tournament. That one strike stood between the Mavs and the championship game of the 2006 BellSouth Southland Conference Tournament. Texas-San Antonio catcher Jessica Els took a two-out, 3-2 pitch over the center-field wall for her second home run of the game to tie the game in the seventh inning as the Roadrunners went on to win 7-5 in nine innings.
"If we win that game UTSA meets Texas State, a team that had swept them during the regular season, and we then face either a UTSA team with a tired pitching staff or Texas State who we matched up well with," said UTA Head Softball Coach Debbie Nichols-Hedrick. "Either way, I liked our chances."
UTA battled back through the losers bracket to face Roadrunners in the title game but dropped an 8-3 decision and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The loss, however, fails to dim what was a successful season by all standards.
Picked sixth by the league's coaches in the preseason, UTA compiled a 32-22 record and third-place in the SLC.
A season-opening tournament win at the Hawai'i Paradise Classic gave the Mavs' the springboard they needed for the season. After losing three of its first four games, UTA rallied to win three games on the final day of the tournament, including a 10-0 whitewashing of Loyola-Marymount in the tournament finals.
"We started slowed, but when we stepped up on Sunday we knew we could compete with quality teams," said Hedrick, now seven victories away from tying Randy Porter for the most coaching wins at UTA with 248. "Early in a season, you need to have something click. I thought was a good time for that to happen."
The Mavs carried the momentum into a pair of wins at the Worth/UTA Invitational. UTA won eight of their first nine league games to set the pace. The Mavericks assured themselves of a spot in the SLC postseason tournament with three weekends of conference play remaining.
Credit the success to the development of underclassmen into the nucleus heading into 2007.
"We still have a relatively young squad and I think the playing time they received as freshmen two years ago makes a big difference," said Hedrick. "Our young players had one year of experience under their belt and they played like veteran players. I think when a player gets playing time in their first year, the experience they receive makes a big difference. We finished ahead of what everyone thought we would.
"We lose some key people this year, but we have a good nucleus returning."
Offensive firepower
Hedrick and new hitting coach, Vince Kwasnick, overhauled the offense prior to the season and reaped the benefits.
UT Arlington set a school-record 31 home runs during the season. Dee Jay Nelson and Jenna Fortune took over the single-season mark for home runs with eight.
"(College softball) has become a power game," said Hedrick. "It is really true. You hear more and more coaches admit it is a power game. I still will use the short game some. (To have a power-oriented offense) you would have to have nine of the same hitters and I don't want to play that way. The game has evolved, but you have to have speed.
"This season was a great starting point. We will continue to work on the transition to the new offense. We are going to get stronger in the weight room and I think we will have more confidence to build on after this season."
UTA will have their top three hitters from this season returning in '07 -- Katie Jones, Nelson and Courtni Anderson. Each batted an average of .318 or better and played in at least 50 games this year. Collectively, they tallied 163 hits, 38 extra base hits and 80 RBI.
Senior Jenna Fortune and Autumn Petrino also batted better than .300 this season while starting all 54 games at second base and outfield, respectively.
UT Arlington flexed its newfound power scoring 93 more runs and hitting 65 more extra-base hits than the year before.
Pitching prevails
The Mavericks ranked among the SLC leaders in pitching this season with a team ERA of 2.35. Weekend starters Jill Garro and Laura Jones combined for a record of 30-19, 338 strikeouts and just 60 walks in 345 innings pitched.
"(Jones) had a nice year. She stepped into the No. 2 role and became an effective pitcher for us," said Hedrick. "She has an outstanding work ethic. When she sets goals, she works hard to reach those goals. I don't think she is finished on making an impact here. Whether she is the No. 1 or 2 pitcher depends on how she accepts that role. I want her to come back and pick up where she left off.
"Jill did a great job this year. She really stepped her mental game up - stayed focused and mentally tough consistently throughout the season an really went out on a great note in the tournament.
"Both of them being consistent was the key to the whole season. They gave us the opportunity to win ballgames."
And win they did, with 32 wins marking the third time in 13 seasons to break the 30-win plateau.
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