Perfect start for Wildcats

EVERETT — If their performance during the first week of the season is any indication of what lies ahead, Archbishop Thomas Murphy’s two young pitchers and their teammates have a bright future.

The Wildcats allowed only one hit in two non-conference games and struck out 21 batters in a pair of victories.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Kennedy got the season off to a memorable start, allowing only one hit and fanning 11 batters to lead Archbishop Murphy to a 3-0 win over Chimacum on March 15.

A day later, it was freshman Kayelynne Huggins’ turn to shine, as she threw a no-hitter and struck out 10 in a 6-0 victory over Seattle Prep.

It might have been a perfect week for the Wildcats were it for one pitch by Kennedy, according to coach Bruce Foxe.

Kennedy was dominating the Chimacum lineup but the best hitter on the team eventually made contact with a change-up, a pitch that was called by Kaitlyn’s older sister Liz, who is the catcher.

“Her sister called a change. She (Liz) said, ‘It’s my fault,’” Foxe said. “Nobody was getting around on (Kaitlyn’s) dropball. They were pounding it on the ground when they did get it.”

At this point, Foxe has tabbed Kaitlyn Kennedy as his No. 1 pitcher. Kennedy pitched last season as a freshman.

“She doesn’t throw as hard (as Huggins),” Foxe said. “But she’s got good spot location and she’s got a super dropball and a good change-up.”

Huggins is more of a power pitcher who relies on her fastball. But the Wildcat freshman also has been working on adding pitches to her repertoire.

Junior co-captain/catcher Liz Kennedy has confidence in both pitchers.

“They complement each other,” she said.

The Wildcats only return one senior in outfielder/second baseman Danielle Shandera. Foxe had yet to decide on a permanent lineup, but he expects he will be penciling in three sophomores and two or possibly three freshmen for every game.

While the team may be young in years, the skill level actually is probably higher than recent seasons.

“We have more talent this year with experience,” Foxe said. “More ASA experience than they have had in the past. More outfield experience.”

Foxe, who is entering his third season with the Wildcats, has had to put players with very little to no experience in the outfield the last two seasons. He won’t have that problem this year.

“That’s a bonus for us,” Foxe said.

Foxe thought offense would be one of his team’s stronger points but after mustering only two hits against Seattle Prep, he’s not so sure now. After that subpar performance, Foxe resolved to get back to the basics.

The Wildcats were doing fine in batting practice but when they got in game situations nerves may have played a factor.

“We’re working on the basics right now — our strides, our swings, stuff like that,” Foxe said. “They’ve got the talent to do it … They’re real anxious to get in there and hit and they’re forgetting everything we’ve been working on.”

Co-captain/third baseman Michelle Linscott sees plenty of potential. It just needs to be fine-tuned a little bit.

“Everything is looking good,” she said. “We just need to work on our mechanics. We can only improve.”

Added Kennedy, “We have a lot of speed. We have some power hitters. I think we have a good variety.”

Archbishop Murphy is coming off a successful 2003 campaign that saw the team capture a Tri-district championship. The Wildcats won one of three games at the Class 1A state tournament.

The road back to state likely will be a lot more difficult this season, Foxe indicated.

“We’ll have a good team,” he said. “But on the flip side, most of the other teams have fairly decent pitching … it’s going to be pretty even. We’re definitely shooting to win the league.

“Anybody who says they’re going to dominate the league is completely wrong as far as I’m concerned. The key issue is pitching. We’ll be in there because we’ve got good pitching. It’s a question of how well the others do.”