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University of Maine freshman Jenna Merchant is a long way from home. But the Sandy, Utah native and starting pitcher for the Black Bear softball team hasn’t let that stop her from having an impact on this year’s squad.
Merchant has started 15 games on the mound for coach Deb Smith and has a 7-7 record and 2.06 earned run average. Much of UMaine’s success this season could be pinned on a freshman with little Division I experience, but that hasn’t bothered coach Smith.
“The team very much respects Jenna’s abilities and she has been a real positive influence on the team so far,” Smith said.
The Black Bears have one last tune-up before conference play begins, a two-game set today at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. The preseason America East poll was released this week and UMaine was picked to finish second, behind Boston University. A second-place finish would be a far cry from a team that finished just 6-20 in conference play a year ago.
“The whole team’s attitude has changed,” Merchant said. “Our goal this season has been to win the conference championship, but until now, it wasn’t something anyone thought we could do.”
Smith, too, was pleased with the ranking but said she doesn’t want her team to get caught up in playing at a certain level.
“[Our ranking] shows the amount of respect the conference has for us,” Smith said. “But I want to take the focus away from rankings and focus more on the little things.”
The Black Bears look to iron out some of the wrinkles today in Massachusetts before they travel to Hartford this weekend and open their conference schedule with a pair of doubleheaders against the Hawks.
“We’re hoping to play with a little more consistency, mentally,” Smith said. “We’ve come out flat in some games lately and it’s shown in our hitting.”
If Merchant continues to improve in the pitcher’s circle, the Black Bears may not need to hit at all. The freshman already has 13 complete games and three shutouts to her credit and probably has her best innings ahead of her, according to Smith.
“Jenna was used to dominating at the high school level and when she got here the hitters were that much better and stronger,” Smith said. “But she’s adapting well to the competition and should really give us a boost in conference play.”
Merchant admits she has a lot to learn, some of which she is finding out the hard way.
“I had never had a home run hit off of me until this year. That was hard,” Merchant said.
Merchant also has had to adapt to playing so far away from home.
“It’s hard, the cold sucks,” she said. “But the hardest part is looking in the stands and not seeing faces I recognize.”
Merchant’s success this season has also been aided by improved hitting from her teammates. Seniors Erica Sobel, Leigh Ann Hlywak, Katie Churchill and Aliesha Rautenberg have provided the offensive firepower that was missing most of last season, and have given Merchant some well-deserved encouragement.
“It’s like having a bunch of big sisters,” Merchant said of her senior teammates. “When I’m struggling, the seniors are the first ones to pick me up. They’re great.”
“The freshmen have meshed really well with the older players,” Smith added. “We have a nice leadership class of seniors.”
Merchant has also provided a little boost with her bat, something pitchers aren’t usually asked to provide. In 67 at bats, she has 16 hits and is third on the team with nine runs batted in.
“That was one of the reasons I came here, coach Smith allows her pitchers to hit,” Merchant said. “You don’t see that too often.”
While she continues to work on her game, one thing that Merchant hasn’t been lacking so far is confidence, not only in herself, but in the entire team.
“I was disappointed with the No. 2 ranking. I wanted to be ranked first,” Merchant said. “Second is good, but it’s not good enough for this team.”
Strong words from a first-year Black Bear, but Merchant has the game to back them up.
Bangor Daily News