Nikki Thomas stands just 5-foot-7. She not of slight build, however she’s nowhere near an intimidating presence when she takes the circle for the IUPUI softball team. By college softball standards, she could be considered small. Yet it’s her shoulders – her right shoulder more specifically – that will be relied upon to continue sending the program in a positive direction.
As a freshman in 2011, the star hurler fanned a school record 173 batters in just 142 innings and accounted for seven of the team’s 15 wins. She pitched in more than 70 percent of the team’s games and logged nearly half of the team’s total innings in the circle.
And although softball is a team sport, success is largely tied to the ace’s performance.
“It was a lot of hard work this year. You get up in the morning and go to workouts and then you have to go to class all sweaty and nasty and then turn around and go back to practice,” Thomas said. “It was tiring. It definitely made me stronger though.
“It’s a long road going from one through seven innings, but I just loved pushing myself and seeing what I could do.”
When interviewing Thomas, there’s one common theme – strength.
Physical strength. Mental strength. Academic strength. She’s added some but wants to add more.
“I want to come back a new girl,” Thomas said of one of her goals for next season. “The season can be really tiring, so I focused on getting a lot of rest and eating right this year. Plus, lifting in the morning has made me a lot stronger. I can already tell.”
Her repertoire includes a fastball, change-up, curve, screwball and rise. She’s able to hit spots and move the ball when she needs to. Her command was sometimes her undoing as a freshman as she walked 68 batters and hit 42 others this past season. Yet more often than not, her control is spot on. And, she’s tinkering with adding a drop to the mix to try to induce more ground balls and become increasingly unpredictable.
“I have speed, but it’s more about knowing when and what to throw. I really want to work on my strength and gain some muscle,” Thomas says of her physique. “It’ll help me get more spin on the ball. On top of that, I want to slow down some pitches to throw batters off balance.
“My pitches move a lot of different ways, but it’s more about knowing how a batter swings and working from there.”
When pitchers struggle, the best security blanket can be provided by a strong-minded catcher. Thomas’ classmate,
Julie Love from suburban Chicago, became that steadying influence this year. Love came in able to play either corner infield spot or anywhere in the outfield, along with behind the dish. By season’s end, she had started at catcher 36 times.
“I had caught before, really from age eight on in travel ball. I've played just about everywhere except middle infield,” Love said. “I didn’t want to be just a catcher though. I want to be able to help the team any way I can.”
Like Thomas, Love doesn’t look the part. She’s tall – 5-foot-10 – and doesn’t fit the short, squatty mold that’s typically reserved for backstops. That deception is part of the recipe for success.
“Nikki’s a very good pitcher and has a lot of talent. I think (Thomas) might throw some people off because she isn’t that big. (Opposing hitters) might not think she throws that hard because of her size, but she does,” Love said. “Me and her got kind of close at the beginning of the year working together. As the year went on, she got more relaxed out there.
“Pitchers work better when they’re comfortable with their catcher and I’m trying to be that catcher.”
Thomas’ freshman resume included tying the school record by striking out 15 batters in 6-1 win over Austin Peay in her collegiate debut on Feb. 12. She whiffed at least 10 batters in a game four times and had a nine-inning one hitter in a late season win over Loyola (Ill.).
The debut especially sticks out though.
“It was my very first game and I was shaking on the mound,” Thomas said. “I didn’t know how many (strikeouts) I had because I wasn’t keeping count out there, but they told me right after I had 15 and had just tied the school record. I was so excited because it was such a great way to start the spring term.”
Another personal favorite outing came against Oakland at home midway through the season. The three-game series was tied 1-1 and Thomas was on in relief with the Jags in front. However, Thomas had worked in and out of trouble since entering in the third. In the sixth, the first three batters reached, loading the bases with no outs.
“It was a tough umpire and the crowd was kinda going crazy,” Thomas said. “You could just feel the intensity of the game and that we needed to win.”
Thomas wiggled off the hook with a pair of popouts sandwiched around a punchout to end the threat.
For Head Coach
Maggie Calcaterra, Thomas is the centerpiece of what was an exceptional freshman class that is expected to lead IUPUI softball for years to come.
Love earned the team’s top defensive award and batted .273 while making 42 starts this season.
Alicia Brewer, the Jaguars’ primary shortstop this past season, led the squad with nine homers and 30 RBI in her rookie campaign. Both
Brandi Lawson and
Jessica Lam batted better than .270 while
Angela Bartucci ranked among the team leaders with a .474 slugging percentage in her freshman season. Bartucci was one of the team’s hottest hitters in the early going before limping to the finish line after a midseason injury.
“We’re all really tight,” Thomas said of her recruiting class. “We came in with the mindset that we wanted to make a statement. Me and Julie (Love) have talked a lot about it and when we’re seniors, we’re hoping the younger girls will catch a feeling of what we’ve done.”
Calcaterra’s 2011-12 roster won’t be completely void of upperclassmen either.
To-be senior
Leah Prewitt led the team with a .297 batting average and was nearly flawless defensively at first base in 2011. She’s made 135 career starts and upped her batting average each season. JC-transfer
Hannah Croucher made an instant impact by batting .265 and swiping a team-best 15 bags in 19 attempts as the team’s primary leadoff batter.
Junior
Nicole Natter provides the pitching staff with a dependable lefty while to-be senior
Samantha Bumbaugh has more than 300 career innings pitched and 250+ strikeouts.
“The talent is there,” Love said. “This year we just couldn’t finish games. Now that we’re all a year older, I think we’ll be stronger and able to finish those games.”
Calcaterra is also excited about the recruits coming in. Three of the six signees hail from California, highlighted by left-handed swinging Nicole Checkie and do-it-all player Emili Escamilla. Love thinks the added depth will only help.
“I think (the recruits) and the returners all need to work hard this summer so that we all earn our positions,” Love said. “The best players are going to be on the field. If they come in and are versatile, than that’s only going to make us better.”
Aug. 3 – Women’s Cross Country
Aug. 10 – Women’s Soccer
Aug. 17 – Men’s Soccer
Aug. 24 – Volleyball
Aug. 31 – Men’s Basketball
Sept. 7 – Women’s Tennis
