Queen of diamond
ERIE — For a while, Ashleigh Schmidt was the only girl on her Little League baseball team.
Now the Freeport graduate is looking to stand out during her senior season on the Penn State Behrend women’s softball squad.
“This is my last year and playing ball has been a big part of my life for a long time,” Schmidt said. “I want to make it count.”
Schmidt led the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference with 10 pitching wins last season. She plays shortstop when she’s not pitching and hit .315 with 23 hits, 18 RBI and 11 runs scored as the Lions won their first AMCC championship since 2017.
“Whether she’s pitching or not, Ashleigh’s bat is always in our lineup,” Behrend coach Ashley Gruber said.
Schmidt’s overall pitching marks last year were 10-2 with one save, 65 strikeouts in 76.1 innings pitched and a 2.38 earned run average.
The conference’s coaches named Schmidt AMCC Preseason Pitcher of the Year before any games were even played in 2022.
“I suppose that puts a little bit of pressure on me, but that’s OK,” Schmidt said. “I’m using that honor as motivation. I want to back up that selection. One of my goals this spring is 100 (careeer) strikeouts. I want that one, for sure.”
She needs only 21 more to get there.
Gruber has no problem with Schmidt wearing that Preseason Pitcher of the Year selection, either.
“Players react differently to that sort of thing,” the coach said. “Some might shut down from that type of pressure being put on them. Ashley embraces this. She’ll just take that notoriety and run with it.”
Schmidt is off to a 2-1 start this season with a 2.85 earned run average. She’s struck out 13 in 19.2 innings pitched in the young season.
After leading the Lions in innings pitched last season, Schmdt is part of a strong four-person pitching staff this year. She’s primarily been a starting pitcher in college after being used mostly as a relief pitcher in high school at Freeport. She played second base for the Yellowjackets.
“Like most pitchers, I prefer to be pitching as much as possible,” Schmidt said. “But we do have plenty of pitching this year and all of us can get the job done. Whoever’s pitching the best will probably be out there.”
While Gruber said she’s hoping to rotate pitchers in and out and keep them all fresh, she stated that “whoever is doing well is getting the ball.”
Offensively, Schmidt has already hit three doubles this season. She bats sixth or seventh in the Behrend lineup and considers herself to be a gap hitter.
“I go up there looking to hit the ball hard,” she said.
Schmidt has been playing ball since age 5, when she started out in T-Ball. She didn’t switch over to softball until age 10, when she joined a 10-under team.
“I was the only girl on my Little League team before that, but there were no softball opportunities for me then,” she said. “Since I joined 10-U, it’s been softball ever since.
“I have another year of eligibility (at Behrend), but this is it for me. I already have a join lined up.”
A nursing major, Schmidt will be taking a job at Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh next year.
This year, she’s aiming for another AMCC championship.
“We have a team that’s capable of repeating,” Gruber said. “If we do, Ashleigh will play a big part in it. Like any season, we have to wait and see how it plays out.”
Two other Butler County area players will have a big say in Behrend’s success as well. Seneca Valley graduate and freshman third baseman Jocelyn McNany is hitting .355 so far this year while junior utility player Cami McNany, an A-C Valley grad, is hitting .313 with a pair of homers.
While Schmidt’s playing days may end, her softball days won’t.
“Softball has meant too much to my life to totally step away,” she said.“In some way, shape or form, I’ll stay involved in the sport for a long time.”
