SB | Kelley listens to freshman, goes on torrid hitting streak
By Michael Bonner
Posted: 4/3/08, 11:48 PM EST Section: Sports
Through the first 13 games of the softball schedule, Syracuse catcher Amy Kelley was batting .237 with only one home run, the only run she scored all season.
All the drills, sprints and swings in the cage during the summer that produced drips of sweat running down her face were now producing irritating walks back to the dugout.
Kelley was excelling at the physical part of the game, but couldn't conquer the mental aspect of getting comfortable in the batter's box. Instead of going to a coach or upperclassmen, the junior sought advice from a surprising choice - a freshman.
"I actually went to Hallie Gibbs and was kind of like, 'What do you to relax?'" Kelley said. "Because I mean, her first at bat of her career was a home run over the fence. Who does that?"
The advice has paid off. In the last 14 games, Kelley raised her average 109 points to a team-high .346.
Kelly hopes to continue the hot streak this weekend as the Orange plays its home opener today at the SU Softball Stadium, with a doubleheader against Providence at 2 p.m. Syracuse will be back in action Sunday for another doubleheader against Connecticut, set to begin at noon.
Kelley is hitting .450, with five home runs, 11 runs and a .925 a slugging percentage in the last 14 games. During the span, Kelley put together a streak of four consecutive games (March 16-30) with a homer.
Syracuse is 10-4 since Kelley has found her stroke.
The freshman Gibbs' solution for Kelley wasn't a complicated one. She told Kelley not to overthink things. See the ball and hit the ball. But it wasn't a softball she told her to see.
"I just said you've got to relax and look at the pitcher and think, 'Here comes that beach ball,'" Gibbs said.
It may have been a strange theory, but Kelley said she respects Gibbs as a hitter, and even though she may not have as much collegiate experience, she has just as much knowledge as anyone. It looks to be working.
Kelley's average has gone up in part thanks to her plate discipline. She is the 12th-hardest hitter to strike out in the nation, getting rung up once every 19.5 plate appearances.
All the drills, sprints and swings in the cage during the summer that produced drips of sweat running down her face were now producing irritating walks back to the dugout.
Kelley was excelling at the physical part of the game, but couldn't conquer the mental aspect of getting comfortable in the batter's box. Instead of going to a coach or upperclassmen, the junior sought advice from a surprising choice - a freshman.
"I actually went to Hallie Gibbs and was kind of like, 'What do you to relax?'" Kelley said. "Because I mean, her first at bat of her career was a home run over the fence. Who does that?"
The advice has paid off. In the last 14 games, Kelley raised her average 109 points to a team-high .346.
Kelly hopes to continue the hot streak this weekend as the Orange plays its home opener today at the SU Softball Stadium, with a doubleheader against Providence at 2 p.m. Syracuse will be back in action Sunday for another doubleheader against Connecticut, set to begin at noon.
Kelley is hitting .450, with five home runs, 11 runs and a .925 a slugging percentage in the last 14 games. During the span, Kelley put together a streak of four consecutive games (March 16-30) with a homer.
Syracuse is 10-4 since Kelley has found her stroke.
The freshman Gibbs' solution for Kelley wasn't a complicated one. She told Kelley not to overthink things. See the ball and hit the ball. But it wasn't a softball she told her to see.
"I just said you've got to relax and look at the pitcher and think, 'Here comes that beach ball,'" Gibbs said.
It may have been a strange theory, but Kelley said she respects Gibbs as a hitter, and even though she may not have as much collegiate experience, she has just as much knowledge as anyone. It looks to be working.
Kelley's average has gone up in part thanks to her plate discipline. She is the 12th-hardest hitter to strike out in the nation, getting rung up once every 19.5 plate appearances.
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