Wednesday, Jul. 08, 2009

Hard work and hot dogs: Dupo pitcher tops all-area list

DUPO -- Dupo pitcher Ashley Meagher's secrets to success are hard work and hot dogs.

"She loves hot dogs,'' Dupo coach Mandy Evers said. "Once we started getting on a roll, she had a superstition where she had to eat a hot dog before every game, so we had to stop at gas stations to get a hot dog, just to get her going.''

Meager prefers hot dogs from gas stations and convenience stories. You know, the ones that have been turning on the cooker for who knows how long.

"That's when they are the best,'' Meagher said. "Huck's in our town, that's where I got them. There was a lady there who always gave them to me for free. They'd been in there all day, and she said, 'Just take them.'''

Fueled by hot dogs, Meagher helped the Tigers make their first-ever trip to the state tournament, where they placed fourth in Class 1A.

The superstitious Meagher blamed a break from her hot dog eating habit for the Tigers' two losses at the state tournament.

"The games before state I didn't have any because we couldn't find any, and we lost both of those games,'' Meagher said. "All of the other games that we lost, I didn't have a hot dog.''

Meagher has been selected as the Belleville News-Democrat's Small-School (Class 1A and 2A) Softball Player of the Year in voting by 12 metro-east coaches.

Meagher compiled a 43-28 record over four seasons for the Tigers.

"I couldn't ask any more of her for four years,'' Evers said. "She has been starting since she was a freshman, and she got better every year.''

Meagher went 3-1 as a freshman in spot duty behind No. 1 pitcher Johanna Ladyman. For the next three seasons, Meagher was the Tigers' No. 1 pitcher.

She saved her best season for last, posting a 20-8 record with a 1.56 ERA this past spring.

"It was a great year to go out on, and I really enjoyed the whole year, even the bad games,'' Meagher said. "We did have some really bad games.''

Case in point was a 9-0 loss to Marissa in the first game of a Cahokia Conference doubleheader on May 11.

"I've never seen a game where all nine players on a team played badly,'' Meagher said. "It was just bad.''

The Tigers bounced back to win the second game 3-0, then strung together nine straight wins.

"Losing that 9-0 game to Marissa was a real shock,'' Meagher said. "After that is when we realized we really had to step it up, and we did.''

The Tigers outscored their first five playoff opponents 36-6 to advance to the Final Four in Class 1A.

All three of the other teams in the Final Four had played in the state tournament the previous year.

"All those teams had an advantage over us because they'd played on that field, and when we pulled up in the bus, the first thing we see is all those people who were there for the first game,'' Meagher said.

Meagher said she was a bundle of nerves prior to the Tigers' 5-1 loss to defending champion Cobden in the semifinal round.

"I was so nervous, I couldn't even warm up,'' Meagher said. "Coach kept telling me, 'You've played bigger games than this with summer ball.' I'm like, 'No, I haven't.'''

The Tigers calmed down a little in the third-place game, losing a close 2-1 decision to Downs Tri-Valley.

Meagher benefited from the Tigers having one of the most potent offenses in the metro-east this season. The Tigers batted .330 as a team, and they averaged six runs per game.

Meagher contributed to that offense by batting .337 with 20 RBIs.

"I owe it all to my uncle (Bryan Bethea) who was the assistant coach,'' Meagher said of her improved hitting this season. "Every time I had a problem, he'd get it fixed. I'd take a bad swing and look down at him, and he'd tell me exactly what I was doing wrong.''

Meagher isn't a power pitcher, though she had 240 strikeouts in 189 innings this past season.

"I don't try to strike every batter out,'' Meagher said. "I just try to get outs. I didn't even worry about my strikeouts. I'm more of a 'just get outs' pitcher.''

Meagher said her favorite pitch is her curveball.

"I've thrown it so much this summer, I already have calluses on my fingers from spinning the ball,'' Meagher said.

Meagher is pitching for the St. Louis Diamond Cats this summer before heading off to Webster University in the fall. Meagher, 18, will join former Dupo outfielder Lindsay McDonald playing for the Gorlocks.

"She's going to be my roommate,'' Meagher said of McDonald. "She's basically been showing me the ropes.''

Meagher plans to major in communications with the hope of finding a career in web page design or journalism.

"I was the layout editor for our high school newspaper,'' Meagher said. "I've been doing it all year. It's very stressful.''

Four of Meagher's teammates -- catcher Kelci Hofstetter, second baseman Bri Nadler, third baseman Megan Bethea and outfielder Jennifer Donald -- also made the first team.

Evers was unanimously voted as Coach of the Year.

"Oh, that's so awesome,'' Meagher said of Evers being honored. "She deserves it. She was the backbone of the team, and she really was the reason we did so well.''