It’s safe to say junior right-hander Jenna Sheehan continues to do her part — and then some — this spring for South Elgin.
The Storm’s ace pitcher, who also plays outfield and has experience at first base in her previous two varsity seasons, is the real deal who brings a complete game to the field for the Upstate Eight Conference leaders.
“That’s the good thing about being a two-way player,” Sheehan said. “If I’m not pitching well, I can always rely on something else like hitting. If I’m not hitting well, I rely on the mound.
“Hitting is definitely a constant. I’ve always hit my whole life. In travel I hit, so some day I’m looking to play in college and I’m working to be a two-way player the whole time.”
Stepping up with the graduation of Loyola-bound ace Anna Kiel from last year’s 29-5 sectional finalist, Sheehan has matched her 7-1 record from last year when she was the No. 2 starter.
And at the plate, she’s leading with her .605 batting average and .717 on-base percentage for a team that features a strong offense.
She was warmed up and ready for a big game in the circle Thursday against Lake Park but rain came and forced a postponement. The Storm beat the Lancers 2-1 last year for the regional title.
“They definitely wanted a piece of us and we wanted a piece of them,” South Elgin coach Brad Reynard said. “They’re in our sectional again, so it would have been nice to get the game in, especially with seeding for the postseason next week.”
Currently sporting a 2.92 ERA, Sheehan has had some bumps in the circle this spring for South Elgin (14-3, 7-0), with her pitch count and walks having increased from a year ago.
“She’s been scuffling a little bit and been effectively wild,” Reynard said. “I think she’s fighting something a little bit. I was looking forward to this game.”
So was Sheehan, who works individually with pitching coach Jill Waldron.
“I think, mentally, I’ve struggled a little bit,” Sheehan said. “After warming up, I was excited to get out on the mound. It’s a new game and you have to put stuff in the past and move on.”
Dubbing herself a spin pitcher who doesn’t focus on velocity, Sheehan still throws hard, usually hitting between 59 and 64 mph.
“I want to hit my spots,” she said. “I have decent composure and I’ll let my defense work behind me. I want to break the ball as much as I can, miss barrels.
“I think (Waldron) wants you to be self aware. Instead of constantly telling me what I’m doing wrong, it’s more like, ‘What do you feel? How do you do this?’”
Sheehan pointed out her fastball has “arm side run,” something that’s rare in that it will break inside toward right-handed hitters.
Sheehan, who plays travel with Iowa Premier, credited her parents Jay and Kristy with big roles in helping her in the sport. While her dad grew up in New Jersey, her mom grew up in Gilberts and played softball at Hampshire and Northern Illinois.
Along with dad’s input, she still sees Curt Carby of the Dennison Silver Hawks for hitting help.
“I’m focusing on seeing the first strike I can,” Jenna said. “I’m looking for that first best pitch and winning the at-bat.”
So far, so good, with Sheehan improving her batting average from .292 as a freshman to .400 last season, when she had a program-record seven triples.
She also has a great eye, with 11 walks this season boosting her on-base percentage.
“Jenna’s been on fire the last five or six games,” Reynard said. “She’s always been a good offensive threat but she’s hitting line drives all over the field.
“She’s square-grooving everything, has good gap-to-gap power and is hitting missiles everywhere.”
