Softball | 1/9/2023 4:57:00 PM
By Paul Suellentrop
Sydney McKinney's senior softball season starts with adjusting a batting tee and placing a ball at a height and location she doesn't like to hit.
"There's immense film on me and everybody my age," she said. "One of my struggles has always been a certain pitch. Coach (
Kristi Bredbenner) has talked to me about it over and over and I work on it as much as I can."
McKinney doesn't want to divulge specifics about the type of pitch that frustrates her for obvious reasons. Understand that at this point in her career, she is working on a small target area and a certain type of pitch that not every pitcher is able to execute.
The willingness to devote time to that weakness is part of what makes McKinney, a shortstop from Norborne, Mo., great. She led the nation in batting average (.522) and hits (97) last season on her way to earning second-team All-American honors. She is hitting .430 for her career at Wichita State, which started in 2019.
The Shockers started practice on Monday with hitting in the morning and workouts at Wilkins Stadium in the afternoon. McKinney handled pitches in that problem area and showed again why she is an example that coaches never tire of using when they talk to the team about work ethic and perseverance.
"She really honed in on some of things she struggled with," Bredbenner said. "And 'struggle' is a pretty loose term there, because she never struggles much. You could tell. She might do two hours on a tee and work on an area that maybe she feels she struggles with and then she gets in that first day of practice and gets some balls in that area and is crushing it."
Nobody in the nation hit the ball more often than McKinney in 2022, when her batting average continued its climb from .329 in 2019 to .439 in 2021. Even that kind of hitter can find satisfaction in the tee and fixing a small hole in her offense.
"That was my first drill (Monday), was live on the field off that pitch and I felt really good about it and Coach B felt really good about it," McKinney said. "It was nice to hear that from her and know that hard work is paying off."
That is a message she practices delivering when she takings hitting with youngsters at camps.
"That's what I preach to my little ones when I'm teaching them," she said. "What you really have to zone in on are the ones you don't like and the ones that make you uncomfortable. That's what's going to make you better."
The Shockers (34-18 in 2022) open the season on Feb. 10 in the Bobcat Classic in San Marcos, Texas. The schedule features home dates against defending national champion Oklahoma, College World Series participant Oklahoma State and super-regional teams Arkansas and Stanford.
That is the competition the Shockers look forward to as they attempt to build an NCAA resume and make that field for a third straight season. They will also play 2022 NCAA regional teams Villanova, Missouri State, Nebraska, Minnesota and American Athletic Conference opponents UCF and USF.
"Our focus is starting (practices) the right way," Bredbenner said. "The expectation is always high. You understand what it takes now to make it to the post-season."
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
