Bright spot in defeat

Lead-off hitter Mathis feels comfortable, provides upside in Dukes’ 10-2 loss at U.Va.

By SAVANNAH REGER

The Breeze

There was no hesitation in freshman second baseman KK Mathis’ eyes. No doubt, no fear. No looking away toward the outfield while answering her questions postgame about the 10-2 loss at U.Va. on Tuesday. She locked eyes and said what needed to be said about the Dukes' performance: the Cavaliers were ready, JMU wasn’t.

“Right when we step foot on the field, right when it says ‘play ball’,” Mathis said, “it’s time to play ball. We have to win every inning from the get-go.”

The Cavaliers hit two home runs in the first two innings, one of which scored three runners, to go up 7-0. Just like against thenNo. 25 Louisiana on March 31-April 2 and in game one of JMU’s series against Georgia State on April 6, when the Dukes get behind quickly, they’ve struggled to bounce back.

Mathis took ownership of JMU’s first inning woes. She said the Dukes knew U.Va. wanted to score first. The Cavaliers stuck to their game plan and JMU got caught out of it.

Even down seven through two innings, head coach Loren LaPorte and Mathis said they were happy with the Dukes’ offensive production. U.Va. started reigning ACC Pitcher of the Week and freshman Eden Bigham, who tossed five innings. Still,

LaPorte said as the game went on the Dukes needed something, a spark, to come up with a timely hit.

LaPorte turned to her lead-off hitter: Mathis, quite literally, stepped up to the plate.

The freshman doubled in the fifth and went 2-for-3 the night. Following her double, junior outfielder Kylee Gleason also doubled, scoring Mathis and getting JMU’s first run on the board.

“I like KK being in front of me because she is a great hitter,” Gleason said. “Hitting is contagious.”

So even with the loss in the final midweek matchup of the season, Mathis said she learned how to provide that spark in the leadoff spot — a spot she’s never played in before.

“It’s the highest spot I’ve been in my whole life,” Mathis said. “Personally, I like it. It makes me more at ease.”

She said she’s at ease more in that spot because instead of coming in three or four in line and needing a hit to score, she’s the one that another batter has to score. Mathis said there’s pressure no matter where you hit but since her first start at lead-off in the second game of the Troy series, she’s felt relaxed.

“Learning how to not play with that pressure on you is very, very hard,” Mathis said. “Once you find it and stay in that groove, you got to stay there. I’m finally getting in my groove a little bit so I’m playing at ease.”

LaPorte said she’s noticed through three games that Mathis has liked the spot. The head coach said that’s because of Mathis' natural leadership ability — she’s constantly talking and telling everybody what she’s seeing on the field. Being the player that sees the pitcher first and adapts quickly for the rest of the lineup is a “natural” spot for her to be in.

“You got to set the tone,” LaPorte said. “I like her there and I think she’s doing a great job of handling it as a freshman.”

Because Mathis is scoring instead of scoring others in her new spot, her mentality hasn’t changed but rather has adjusted. She said now it’s about finding any way to get on base so that when hitters follow her, someone’s there, waiting to score.

As a result, she said she’s producing more walks.

“I’m seeing more pitches to let my teammates have more of a look at them,”

Mathis said. “They have more of an idea of what they’re getting into. So any way we can find production, we’re doing it.”

JMU heads to Huntington, West Virginia, for a three-game series with Marshall starting Friday. The Thundering Herd enter the series off a loss to No. 13 Alabama and only trail Louisiana in the Sun Belt standings with three weeks remaining.

To see success this weekend, Mathis said the team needs to keep fighting. It needs to keep finding a way on base and make adjustments quickly.

“[U.Va.] was ready to jump on us from the beginning,” Gleason said. “Our weakness was getting through the first inning. So if we can capitalize early like they did, we can see a different result.”

CONTACT Savannah Reger at regersj@dukes. jmu.edu. For more softball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.