An observer might say pitcher Cory Mattson was the glue that held the Everett High School softball team together.
But, in an odd twist, by the end of the Seagulls’ historic 2008 season Mattson needed adhesive to keep her body from falling apart.
The index finger on the senior’s right hand was so worn out during the Class 3A state fastpitch tournament that it split open. Mattson’s tool for repairing the gash: superglue.
Seriously.
The cut was most annoying when she used grips to throw a curveball or a riseball, Mattson said.
“It hurt,” said the University of North Carolina at Greensboro recruit, “but I just tried not to think about those things during the game.”
The pain didn’t seem to affect Mattson’s performance. In five state tourney games she tossed four shutouts and led Everett to a third-place finish. It was the first top-four trophy in team history.
For a season in which she guided Everett to its second district championship in three years and new heights at state, Mattson is The Herald’s All-Area Softball Player of the Year.
Mattson, who also received the Player of the Year honor in 2006, was Everett’s No. 1 pitcher for four seasons. The Seagulls advanced to state each year but until this spring had never won a trophy.
“We’ve been working at it four years now,” Mattson said.
Everett softball coach Kyle Peacocke used words like “phenomenal” and “amazing” to describe Mattson’s pitching performance at her final state tourney. At SERA Fields in Tacoma she allowed two earned runs in 35 innings pitched, striking out 71 hitters and allowing just five walks.
The only team that scored runs against Mattson was Kennedy, which rallied to beat Everett 5-2 in the semifinals and went on to defeat Timberline for the championship.
Everett, which led 1-0 through six innings versus Kennedy, was emotionally and physically exhausted after the semifinal setback, Peacocke said.
But Mattson stayed focused, he said, and tossed back-to-back shutouts later in the day against Southridge and Bonney Lake, and the Seagulls placed third in the 16-team competition.
“She pretty much put us on her shoulders those last two games,” said Peacocke.
Earlier in the tournament, Mattson sparked Everett’s 2-0 first-round victory. In addition to throwing a one-hitter, she hit a triple that drove in her team’s first run.
Mattson was calm and poised all season, especially at state, said senior Lauren Hope, one of Everett’s three four-year starters along with Mattson and Ally Pappas.
“She’s always pushed herself but it seemed like this year, being a senior, she had more confidence,” Hope said of Mattson. “She wanted to actually get somewhere and do something.”
The turning point was obvious: On April 28 Everett lost 3-2 against Arlington in a division game and its record slipped to 11-4. From there Mattson and the Seagulls won 11 of 12 games, including a 4-1 record at state.
“Halfway through the season something just started clicking and we were just playing really good and having a lot of fun,” Mattson said.
This spring she tallied 318 strikeouts and 21 victories, breaking her previous single-season school records in both categories. Mattson also tossed 14 shutouts, including a no-hitter, and had a 0.61 earned-run average in 185 innings pitched. On offense, she smacked eight extra-base hits and drove in 12 runs.
In her Everett career the pitcher compiled what Peacocke called “unbelievable” statistics. Highlights include 75 victories, 1,016 strikeouts, six no-hitters and three perfect games.
“For me it’s just been an absolute blast. Pitchers like her don’t come around very often and opportunities like she had don’t come around very often,” Peacocke said, referring to how Mattson became Everett’s top pitcher as a freshman.
Previously known as a talented player who rarely spoke up, this spring Mattson bonded more with teammates, Hope said. Mattson asked to host the first team dinner of the season. It was one of several occasions when she uttered one-liners and laughed at others’ jokes, said Hope.
“On the field she’s still very calm and quiet,” Hope said, “but off the field she definitely warmed up to us a little bit.”
One thing that never changed was Everett’s confidence when Mattson stepped onto the mound.
“For her to be so consistent over a four-year period, it was an amazing feeling,” Peacocke said, “because you knew that no matter who you were playing you were going to have a chance to win the game.”
Writer Mike Cane: mcane@heraldnet.com. Check out the prep sports blog Double Team at www.heraldnet.com/doubleteam.
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