By, Gabe Taylor (SCU Media Relations)
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - As a freshman, Stephanie Fisher (SF)
earned a spot in the starting lineup without delay, appearing No. 2
in the batting order from Opening Day. After posting a .276 batting
average, Fisher is ready to hit the field once again and capitalize
on the experience she gained playing in all 39 games in 2011.
Fisher caught up with SantaClaraBroncos.com (SCB) to revisit her
rookie campaign and her expectations for the rapidly approaching
season, which opens Friday, Feb. 9 at UTEP.
SCB: What was it like being able to start every game as a
freshman? Did you expect you would receive that much playing time
prior to the season?
SF: It was great being able to start every game as a
freshman. Knowing that I was a freshman, I knew that I had to work
for a spot in the starting lineup and I think the work going into
getting that spot made me a better player than I was coming into
the program. I didn't expect to play every game, and I am grateful
that I was able to get that type of experience my first year at
Santa Clara.
SCB: If you had to pick one highlight from playing softball your
freshman year, what would it be?
SF: It definitely has to be my first homerun over the fence
against Sacramento State in the first inning of the game. That was
probably the coolest thing for me last season.
SCB: What was going in your head when you hit your first homerun?
Did you know it was gone right after you connected with the
ball?
SF: I was so excited! I knew I hit it hard, but it was a
slap so I didn't expect it to go over. When it did, it felt
amazing! It was even cooler that it was part of back-to-back
homeruns with Bri (Briana
Knight) coming up after me with her first at-bat since getting
hurt and hitting it over the fence as well.
SCB: When you had your hitting streak going last year, was it on
your mind when you would go up to bat?
SF: When I'm up to bat, the only thing I think about is finding
any way possible to get on base. Every game, I had a goal set that
I would try to get at least one hit per game. I never thought of a
streak throughout the season, but I wanted to be consistent game by
game.
SCB: What have you worked on most heading into this upcoming
season?
SF: My main focus coming into the season is hitting the
ball no matter what part of the plate it crosses. I want to be able
to pull the inside pitch as well as going with the outside pitch
and driving it the other way. I want to be that player that the
pitchers don't know what to pitch to me.
SCB: What are your expectations for both yourself and
for the team?
SF: For the team, I feel like this is going to be a much
better season than in the past, especially with all of the freshmen
and transfers that just joined us this season. With all of the new
talent combining with the old talent, I know we are going to do
better. For myself, I know what to expect now at the college level
so now I can focus on the little things that I didn't get to focus
on last year. I'm really excited for the season to start as well as
to see how we do this year.
