2021 Softball Preview: Getting Defensive
February 03, 2021 | Softball, #ForBoston Files
Behind the solid pitching numbers is a defense capable of stonewalling any style.
Pitchers carry a certain swagger when things are going well on the slab. Their increased confidence changes speeds more easily, and each throw's movement confuses hitters a little bit more than usual. Their whole approach changes depending on the scenario, and their mechanics sync effortlessly to their success.
Boston College's entire staff knows how that feels after reaching heights in 2020. The Eagles finished the abbreviated season as the fourth-best pitching unit in the ACC after a dominant season paved primarily by Susannah Anderson. They finished second in the league in both hits and runs allowed and seeded best in preventing the long ball. It was as complete a season as possible even though COVID-19 inhibited the year from finishing.
That it happened was the result of a number of different factors, but the pitching would never have reached its heights without a solid defense behind it. BC finished the season with the sixth-best fielding unit in the conference, and as 2021 dawns, another year of development ultimately means the ceiling is even higher than the previous year's success.
"There's no doubt (in the chemistry between pitcher and defense)," head coach Amy Kvilhaug said. "You want to think about what you're given from a pitcher like (CC Cook) who is more of a flyball pitcher or an up-ball pitcher or with Peyton (Schnackenberg), where we might want to have a quicker outfield versus (Anderson), who people may want to bunt against. Suze is a groundball pitcher and likes to bust people inside. So we're going to have to have our most solid infield and play (to our strengths)."
It goes beyond which player is at a particular position and instead focuses on the individuals' ability to play with one another inside a given lineup. Each opponent has its own case study from the lineup to the defense, and the scout on each team offers different situational looks. For Kvilhaug, it's not about how one player plays into that situation as much as it reflects the team doing so together.
It's a development objective for a team that finished the year in the middle of the conference in fielding percentage last season. BC committed 23 errors and lost every game where an opponent scored at least one unearned run, but it was one of three teams with less than three passed balls. It was better than five teams at preventing stolen bases and turned six double plays across 21 games. Five Eagles with more than 10 defensive chances posted perfect fielding percentages, and both Kristin Giery and Gianna Boccagno posted .975 percentages with more than 100 putouts.
"If we're playing a small ball team that likes to run, we know we're going to go with our quicker corners," Kvilhaug said. "If we're playing a team like NC State that likes to swing for the fences, we're going to need outfielders to cover a lot of ground. We also go off of our pitchers, as well as our opponents, and the cool thing is that we know each other. We had quite a few freshmen last year, and the freshmen are now sophomores. They know what the tendencies of the pitchers are."
That will ultimately help a player like Djhane Valido, a sophomore from California who experienced early season growing pains as a freshman shortstop. She committed four errors in her first four games last season in early February but rebounded to post eight consecutive clean sheets through the end of the month. She was a nearly-perfect 15-for-16 on chances against Georgia Tech in the ACC opening weekend after posting a stretch of another three consecutive games without an error.Â
Her 51 assists more than doubled any of her teammates except for AJ Alatorre, a fellow rising sophomore capable of playing the corner infield spots. Alatorre posted 34 assists and 16 putouts in 50 chances, a perfect percentage in the field with three turned double plays.
"I think we can put together the best lineup that's going to match up with whoever we're playing," Kvilhaug said. "It's 'find the best' and see who is doing the best, then figure out how to do that within the construct of your opponents. That's what we'll do right now. I have lineups where I can have a quick outfield and some slow corners, and I have lineups where I can have some really athletic infielders."
Boston College opens up the 2021 softball season on Friday, February 12 with a doubleheader at Jacksonville University. The Eagles will then take on North Florida for a doubleheader on Saturday before finishing with a single game Sunday versus Jacksonville.
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Boston College's entire staff knows how that feels after reaching heights in 2020. The Eagles finished the abbreviated season as the fourth-best pitching unit in the ACC after a dominant season paved primarily by Susannah Anderson. They finished second in the league in both hits and runs allowed and seeded best in preventing the long ball. It was as complete a season as possible even though COVID-19 inhibited the year from finishing.
That it happened was the result of a number of different factors, but the pitching would never have reached its heights without a solid defense behind it. BC finished the season with the sixth-best fielding unit in the conference, and as 2021 dawns, another year of development ultimately means the ceiling is even higher than the previous year's success.
"There's no doubt (in the chemistry between pitcher and defense)," head coach Amy Kvilhaug said. "You want to think about what you're given from a pitcher like (CC Cook) who is more of a flyball pitcher or an up-ball pitcher or with Peyton (Schnackenberg), where we might want to have a quicker outfield versus (Anderson), who people may want to bunt against. Suze is a groundball pitcher and likes to bust people inside. So we're going to have to have our most solid infield and play (to our strengths)."
It goes beyond which player is at a particular position and instead focuses on the individuals' ability to play with one another inside a given lineup. Each opponent has its own case study from the lineup to the defense, and the scout on each team offers different situational looks. For Kvilhaug, it's not about how one player plays into that situation as much as it reflects the team doing so together.
It's a development objective for a team that finished the year in the middle of the conference in fielding percentage last season. BC committed 23 errors and lost every game where an opponent scored at least one unearned run, but it was one of three teams with less than three passed balls. It was better than five teams at preventing stolen bases and turned six double plays across 21 games. Five Eagles with more than 10 defensive chances posted perfect fielding percentages, and both Kristin Giery and Gianna Boccagno posted .975 percentages with more than 100 putouts.
"If we're playing a small ball team that likes to run, we know we're going to go with our quicker corners," Kvilhaug said. "If we're playing a team like NC State that likes to swing for the fences, we're going to need outfielders to cover a lot of ground. We also go off of our pitchers, as well as our opponents, and the cool thing is that we know each other. We had quite a few freshmen last year, and the freshmen are now sophomores. They know what the tendencies of the pitchers are."
That will ultimately help a player like Djhane Valido, a sophomore from California who experienced early season growing pains as a freshman shortstop. She committed four errors in her first four games last season in early February but rebounded to post eight consecutive clean sheets through the end of the month. She was a nearly-perfect 15-for-16 on chances against Georgia Tech in the ACC opening weekend after posting a stretch of another three consecutive games without an error.Â
Her 51 assists more than doubled any of her teammates except for AJ Alatorre, a fellow rising sophomore capable of playing the corner infield spots. Alatorre posted 34 assists and 16 putouts in 50 chances, a perfect percentage in the field with three turned double plays.
"I think we can put together the best lineup that's going to match up with whoever we're playing," Kvilhaug said. "It's 'find the best' and see who is doing the best, then figure out how to do that within the construct of your opponents. That's what we'll do right now. I have lineups where I can have a quick outfield and some slow corners, and I have lineups where I can have some really athletic infielders."
Boston College opens up the 2021 softball season on Friday, February 12 with a doubleheader at Jacksonville University. The Eagles will then take on North Florida for a doubleheader on Saturday before finishing with a single game Sunday versus Jacksonville.
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Players Mentioned
3B/1B
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
C/3B
/ Softball
1B/OF
/ Softball
SS/3B
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