Kindra Davis was the perfect answer to the question Mike Keen faced.
Who would replace Kaitlin Reynolds, a four-year, all-league pick now playing at the University of Pacific, at catcher for W.F. West High School’s fastpitch team? Keen, the Bearcats fastpitch coach for the past 14 years, had the ideal solution – Davis.
“She’s the best right handed-hitter I’ve ever coached,” Keen said as he watched Davis drill a line-drive single into left field during a recent practice.
Davis, while only a sophomore, is the real deal. Besides the vacuum glove and the throw-them-out arm, Davis has also got the hot bat. She’s batting .550 and whacked grand slams in back-to-back games this season, helping the Bearcats get off to an 18-0 start heading into the playoffs. And she’s got another important intangible, a quality that won’t show up on the stat sheet. She has a sense of humor.
Whenever Davis goes to the pitcher’s mound to talk to her teammate and good friend, Ashlee Vadala, she doesn’t talk about mechanics. She doesn’t scold. She tells a joke.
“When she gets upset, when she’s struggling a little bit, we have these little jokes that only we know,” Davis said with a smile.
Humor helps unplug the tension. In a sport of high anxiety, Davis knows when to interject a chuckle moment.
“It gets her mind off that and it lightens the mood and she can calm down,” Davis said. “I’m just there for her.”
Actually, Davis and Vadala needed no introduction coming into this season. They’ve been buddies since grade school. They’re both only sophomores. But they’re two big reasons why W.F. West, last year’s 2A state fastpitch champs, are undefeated and heading back to the state playoffs.
That familiarity and friendship is key when they’re on the softball field, facing a 3-2 count with runners on first and second with two outs.
“It actually really helps,” Vadala said about Davis being her catcher for so long. “It helps because we know each other. We’ve been working really hard for a long time.”
And besides knowing what pitch to call, Davis also knows when to make a joke.
“We’ve been friends since kindergarten,” Davis said. “It’s been awesome.”
What makes Vadala so special is she’s not just a pitcher, which she does extremely well. She’s got a stingy 1.75 ERA with an 8-0 record. She’s also got a win-the-game bat, hitting .419 so far this season. Last year, she broke her school record for home runs for a season with eight. To go along with the pitch and the bat, Vadala has one more special talent. She’s a 4.0 student. From grade school to her sophomore year in high school, she’s never had anything but an A on her report card.
“I had an A-minus once,” said Vadala, who is a true definition of student-athlete.
So, to keep that bat employed, Vadala plays first base when she’s not pitching. And when Vadala isn’t pitching, Lexi Strasser is. Strasser, a junior who didn’t pitch much last year during the Bearcats run to a state title, has done better than Keen could have hoped. With an overpowering, catch-the-corners fastball, Strasser has a frugal 1.71 ERA.
Coming into the season, Keen wasn’t worried about putting Vadala into pressure situations despite being only a sophomore.
“She’s a sophomore in age only,” Keen said. “Maturity wise, she’s wise beyond her years. To be honest with you, the only hesitancy I had was whether we had other pitchers.”
Strasser, with her low ERA and steady pitching, has quieted those concerns.
“Right now, we’re running two pitchers out there as aces,” Keen said.
Both pitchers will not throw their last pitch when they graduate from high school. Vadala is already being recruited by some major colleges, including the University of Washington. Strasser has committed to Central Washington University.
Like Vadala, Strasser isn’t just a pitcher who can’t hit. She’s batting .586. That’s a payoff from working in the batting cages every day with her teammates.
“We just work hard in the cages,” Strasser said. “It’s pays off on the field.”
Winning state last year was a dream come true. But it’s a championship that hasn’t resulted with contentment, satisfaction that leads to slacking.
“We won last year, but I think we’re all very motivated to get back there and win again,” Strasser said. “Everyone is very competitive.”
Ali Graham, Chehalis’ ace pitcher last year in the Bearcats run to a state title, has finished her high school career and is now pitching at Oregon Tech. But she made one more important pitch for her alma mater this spring. She called Vadala, giving her some tips and insight.
“Before the season, she called me and talked to me about everything,” Vadala said.
Graham talked to Vadala about being a leader, about handling the pressure. She cared that much she made the call to help settle a friend.
“She talked about not getting down on myself when things aren’t going the right way,” Vadala said. “She said stay positive and be a leader on the team even though I’m young.”
Coming into the season, Keen admits he had doubts. There were some holes to be filled. Then Jessica McKay, an all-league shortstop, got hurt during the basketball season. But an undefeated string – which includes wins against bigger schools like Olympia, Yelm and Camas – quieted those concerns.
“There wasn’t a lot of experience in the circle,” Keen said about his pitching staff.
The team’s motto has been play hard on every play, whether it’s practice or in a game. Keen is always posting quotes for his team. A recent one was about effort. It said, “You should only know if it’s a game or practice based on whether you’re wearing a uniform.”
“Our goal is to win our next game,” Keen said.
It’s been a winning formula for a team hoping to win back-to-back state championships.
