Commanding the circle: Trinity senior pitcher thrives in key role

April 21, 2018

For The Tribune

Hannah Deaton recalled that one day when she showed up for a youth league softball game in Seymour, the coaches asked her to pitch.

Since that day, Deaton has spent a lot of time in the circle.

“I’ve been pitching since I was 8 years old, so I kind of stuck with it,” Deaton said.

Deaton said she throws both inside and outside.

“I throw a screwball, a drop-curve, a fastball, a riseball and a changeup,” she said. “I enjoy the strikeouts. They just make me feel good. I usually go to a private hitting and pitching coach. It lets me know that I’m actually doing my job when I go and see him, and he’s doing his job to make sure that I can carry my team.”

During games, Deaton uses whichever pitches work best.

“It just kind of depends on how I warm up,” Deaton said. “If I warm up throwing all those pitches and they’re all working, then we’ll try to rotate and throw them all, but if one of them is not working, then we’ll not throw it at all.”

Deaton said the catcher gives her two signals — one for location and the other for the type of pitch to be thrown.

“I actually have two favorite pitches. They would be my screwball or my drop-curve just because both of them have a different spin on them,” Deaton said. “When you’re in the batter’s box and the pitches are coming in, my screwball looks like it is going to come in on the inside, but when it comes in, it’s got a real break on it, so it comes further inside. So it kind of throws batters off, and they have a late timing.”

She said prior to the game, she and a coach will go over a scouting report on the opponent.

In action, Deaton looks to the dugout for calls.

“Our pitching coach, Libby (Followell), is the one that calls all of our pitches,” Deaton said. “She tries to decide who can hit what and determine what we throw from there. Most of the time, we just stick with inside, outside and change-ups for the lower batters.

“It is very important to get ahead in the count because if the other team is ahead in the game, if I get ahead in my pitching, then that gives us a chance to come back and win. If I walk somebody or someone gets a hit, that gives them a chance to score.”

Deaton has been batting in the No. 6 and No. 7 spots in the lineup for Trinity.

“I try to listen what Chad (Goecker, head coach) tells me and what we need the most,” Deaton said. “If I see girls that are on base and we’re down and we need to score, I’ll put the ball in play. You’ve got to go up there with a positive attitude and just know that anything can happen.”

When she is not in the circle this season, Deaton plays at first base.

“That was kind of a surprise for me because I’m not that tall,” Deaton said. “I had never played first. On my travel teams, I usually played outfield. Chad put me at first to see how it would work out. Usually, my infielders are good about throwing the ball to my chest.”

On the schedule, Deaton looks forward to the home games.

“We just go out there and do our stuff, listening to our music getting all pumped up and getting ready to go,” she said. “It feels good to win on your home field. Whenever I see my parents, friends and family out there watching me, it just makes me happy. It makes me hyped up for my game knowing that they’re all there to watch me and support me no matter if we win or lose.”

Deaton said you have to work hard in practice to succeed.

“Practice is very important because practice is where you’re going to learn where your mistakes are and learn what you need to work on for a game,” Deaton said. “Like if we go and play in a game and we have fielding errors, then we knew the next day in practice, that’s what we’re going to work on and that’s what will be our main focus so we can become better.

“The main thing I enjoy is being with my teammates knowing we’re all staying positive during a game,” she said. “This year, our goal is to make it to semistate, so we’re just pushing to get there. First, we’ve got to make it through sectional, and I have a pretty good feeling we’ll do that.”

She transferred from Seymour High School to Trinity at the beginning of her sophomore year.

“The thing I love about Trinity is the small setting,” Deaton said. “I fit in much more with a small group of people. I know everyone here by name. I love the setting, the atmosphere, everything. I’ll remember all my bus rides and the fun times at practices. It’s been a lot of fun. I’ll miss it.”

[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”Deaton file” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]

Name: Hannah Deaton

School: Trinity Lutheran High School

Parents: Rachel Mellencamp, Charles Deaton

Sibling: Chloe

Sports: Softball, four years; volleyball, two years

Athletic highlight: Softball sectional champion in 2016

Organizations: Culture Club, Art Club, student ambassador, events team, yearbook

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