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Battle Ground Battery: Senior catcher helps sophomore pitcher come into her own

Stillman, Meyer lead Tigers to 4A GSHL title

By Tim Martinez, Columbian Assistant Sports Editor

Published: May 15, 2019, 11:03pm

9 Photos

Battle Ground catcher Grace Stillman throws to first base as pitcher Mallory Meyer runs to cover home plate during an infield drill during a recent practice at Battle Ground High School. Stillman was named the 4A Greater St. Helens League MVP while Meyer was named pitcher of the year. Photos by Nathan Howard/The Columbian Photo Gallery

BATTLE GROUND — As a senior catcher on a young Battle Ground softball team, Grace Stillman can be counted on to say the right thing when her young pitcher gets into a jam.

A word of encouragement.

A suggested adjustment.

A line from her favorite sitcom.

“Most of the time, I just try to make her laugh a little,” Stillman said of sophomore pitcher Mallory Meyer. “Drop a line from ‘The Office’ or something. But then I’ll just remind her she’s a great pitcher. One batter got a hit, but forget about it, and let’s get the next one. And then she does.”

The success of a softball team often depends heavily on the success of its pitcher. And the success of a pitcher often hinges on contributions of her catcher.

And that is what happened with Meyer, who grew from an inconsistent freshman into the 4A Greater St. Helens League pitcher of the year, helping the Tigers to the league championship.

“I definitely believe Grace played a big part in that,” Battle Ground coach Arielle Wiser said. “Grace does a great job of talking to Mallory, and not talking down to her, in the way you might expect a senior to talk to a sophomore pitcher.”

Meyer said the Tigers’ somewhat surprising success this season was sparked by Stillman’s leadership and her production, which led her to be voted the league player of the year.

“Grace is always talking on the field, being encouraging, being a leader and letting people know where they need to be,” Meyer said.

Meyer said she didn’t think much about possibly being the league pitcher of the year when the season began, particularly when the Tigers opened the season 4-4.

“I think the big turning point was about halfway through our league season when we were still undefeated and knew we could compete for a league title,” Wiser said.

The Tigers’ success surprised many, including the Tigers themselves.

“At the start of the year, I thought we’d have this scrappy little team,” Stillman said. “But then we started winning games, and our confidence just grew.”

Meyer added: “And the other thing was that we had a young team with a lot of freshmen. I just took everyone a little while to figure out where they fit.”

Stillman, along with infielder Brianna Adams, are the lone seniors on a roster that features six freshmen.

“Getting those freshmen to make contributions has been huge,” Wiser said.

Meyer’s emergence as an elite pitcher also sparked Battle Ground’s turnaround, Stillman said.

“The biggest change this season has been the movement on her pitches,” Stillman said, “particularly on her rise ball.”

After finishing 11-1 in the 4A GHSL, next up for the Tigers is the 4A bi-district tournament in Kent. Battle Ground opens with a first-round game against Todd Beamer at 4:30 p.m. Friday.

“We know the teams in the leagues up north are good,” Stillman said. “We’re going to need to be ready for them. It’s important for us to get off to a good start, because we’ve had a habit of not starting to hit until the third or fourth inning. We don’t want to get ourselves in a hole.”

With Stillman’s leadership, Wiser doesn’t see that happening.

“Grace is such a great leader,” Wiser said. “Often I have pitchers and catchers go off by themselves to work. And lot of the time, you’ll see kids going through the motions, talking about school or boys or whatever. But I know with Grace over there, she’ll keep everyone focused.”

Unless, of course, the situation calls for a giggle and a line from “The Office.”

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