HUMBOLDT — Humboldt’s Shelby Shaughnessy has been a main factor in the Lady Cubs’ success this season.
Shaughnessy, a sophomore, has worked at pitcher and has also mashed at the plate. She holds a 9-1 record in the circle. Shaughnessy bats in third position and had a team-high two hits against Neodesha and scored a team-high three runs in a win over Cherryvale.
In Humboldt’s first victory over Neodesha, Shaughnessy started in the circle, throwing a complete game no-hitter in a 17-1 victory — not a bad way to begin the season. She also reached base four times through the doubleheader against Neodesha.
Shaughnessy also had shutouts against Eureka and Cherryvale, tossing four and six innings in those games, respectively.
“I’ve been having a lot of fun this year serving as our main pitcher and my coaches and teammates have had a big impact on my pitching when I’m struggling,” said Shaughnessy. “I’ve had to step up and pitch a lot more because our other main pitcher was injured for a while and I feel like I’ve been able to help hitting-wise too.”
Shaughnessy said she’s aiming for a state tournament appearance. The Lady Cubs are 17-3 on the season under the helm of head coach Brad Piley.
“I feel like we accomplished what we’ve been trying to do and one of our main goals is going to state because we haven’t been there in a while and coach (Piley) really wants to go and we all really want to go,” Shaughnessy said.
“Softball is my favorite sport,” Shaughnessey said. “I’ve been playing since I was seven years old. It’s always been fun for me and an environment I love to play in. Having the early experience has really helped me grow to love the sport.”
Humboldt matches up in the Class 3A regional playoff tournament this week.
“I think the mental aspect of this game is something that’s really important as a pitcher,” said Shaughnessy. “It can be a lot of pressure as a pitcher. You’ve got to have confidence and have mechanics down to throw a good pitch. Velocity and control also help in the circle.”
Humboldt faced off against Burlington in the second round of the Class 3A regional playoffs Wednesday afternoon.
