WEST FORK — Spencer Sagely has played softball since she can remember, and she has played much of that time against competition at least a couple of years older than her.
So playing at the high school level as a freshman was not a stretch. But leading her team in hitting, that’s a different story.
Sagely hit .492 with 17 RBIs to help West Fork earn its first state tournament berth since 2001. She was honored as the All-NWA Media Newcomer of the Year for softball for her accomplishments.
Even Tony Sagely, West Fork softball coach and Spencer’s father, wasn’t sure how she would hit at the high school level.
Profile
Spencer Sagely
SCHOOL: West Fork
CLASS: Freshman
HEIGHT: 5-4
NOTABLE: Led the Lady Tigers in hitting with a .492 batting average and a .541 on-base percentage with 17 RBIs, also a team high. … Earned honorable mention all-conference honors. … Also plays volleyball for the Lady Tigers
“I put her in about the six hole the first two or three games and then I saw she was putting it in play, making contact,” Tony Sagely said. “I made up my mind to move her up to the two hole.”
That worked our well for Sagely and the Lady Tigers, who enjoyed a big turnaround this season from 3-14 a year ago to 13-8 this season.
“She could bunt and move runners, that was one of the main reasons I moved her up,” Sagely said.
Spencer Sagely acknowledged there were a few nerves early in the season, but after that it just became about doing the same thing she has done for years — playing softball.
“By the middle of the season, it was just normal for me,” Spencer Sagely said. “I had a lot of support from my teammates on and off the field, which gave me confidence. Knowing that I knew how to play and I could just go out there and do what I know how to do was helpful.”
The freshman helped keep the Lady Tigers’ offense clicking by getting hits or just moving runners over as senior Sydney Franklin did her job getting on base as the lead-off hitter, the elder Sagely said.
“I was surprised at the number of runs she was able to drive in,” Tony Sagely said.
Sagely also enjoyed her banner season playing a different position from what she’s accustomed to. Her father asked her to play in the outfield even though she has spent most of the time in the infield.
“She’s really a second baseman, but I pretty much had my infield set,” Sagely said. “But we needed some outfielders, so I put her in left. She had trouble early because on the infield you’re taught to come in first, but in the outfield it’s different, but did a fine job.”
Another part of adapting for the freshman was playing for her father. Tony Sagely admitted coaching his daughter wasn’t easy.
“It’s really hard to find that balance where I’m not too hard on her, but I’m not too easy either,” Sagely said. “She hears it from me more at home.”
Spencer Sagely said she figured out one way to deal with her father, especially after a bad performance.
“If I had a bad game, I just knew to ride home with mom,” Sagely said with a laugh.