Stewart looking to hit her hitter's stride
Monday, June 1, 2015 | Soccer, Softball, Chris Harry
Junior All-American Kelsey Stewart bats in Sunday's Women's College World Series semifinals, a 3-2 win over Auburn.
OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Florida Gators are in the Women's College World Series national championship series without a lot of noise from Kelsey Stewart.
On-the-field noise, that is.
“Sometimes, I'll just go in the back and scream a little bit,” Stewart said Monday morning. “That's how I get it out of my system.”
Stewart, the All-America second baseman and Southeastern Conference Player of the Year, has gone 4-for-12 at the WCWS, with a double and triple, plus one run scored. Her average here is .333 -- hardly shabby -- but Stewart leads the Gators with a .442 average and 31 extra-base hits during the 2015 season.
You can imagine how the junior, one of the fiercest competitors on the squad, felt after leading off the last two games with big hits (a triple Friday against LSU, then a double Sunday against Auburn) and failing to score. Or against Auburn on Sunday when she popped out with runners at first and second in the fourth, popped out again with the winning run at second in the seventh, then struck out with the winning run on second in the ninth.
The good news for Stewart, of course, was that her teammates were there to pick her up. In this case, it was freshman Nicole DeWitt, who followed Stewart's strikeout with a single that scored Justine McLean with the game-winner and put reigning champion UF in the WCWS title series for the second straight year.
For that, Stewart was thankful, but the missed opportunities definitely gnawed at her.
“I was extremely frustrated,” Stewart said. “I think I was trying too hard and my frustration got the best of me. Now, it's about bouncing back.”
Coach Tim Walton had a settling conversation with his star after the big 3-2 extra-inning win over the Tigers. He told her to think of the postseason in four phases, each its own separate entity: regional play, Super Regional play, College World Series play and national championship play.
The Gators (58-6) are in the best-of-three national championship series starting Monday night against Michigan (59-6). Game time is 8 p.m. The next, last and most pivotal phase.
“Fresh, clean slate,” Stewart said with a smile. “Whole new ballgame.”
Florida's best hitter, no doubt, will have several more clutch opportunities to do what she does best.
