“Fear nobody, respect everybody,” Miller said. “That is 100 percent our motto. That’s been a really big factor for this year. We’ve got it stuck in our heads every game. We’re going to do what we have to do.”
What Carlisle has been doing this season is winning — a lot of it — thanks to a combination of seasoned pitching and a potent offense.
The Indians, ranked eighth in the Ohio High School Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association poll, were 13-0 (6-0 Southwestern Buckeye League West Division) record following recent run-rule wins against Eaton, Talawanda and Oakwood.
Miller, senior Ashlyn Chatterton and the Indians are 60-7 dating back to the 2021 season, which includes a pair of district titles and two straight conference championships.
Miller and Chatterton are the only seniors on a junior-heavy squad that has outscored opponents 137-19 in 2023.
“We’re almost like a family. It is literally like a family,” said Miller, who leads the Indians with 25 hits, 22 runs scored, 19 RBIs and three home runs.
“We pick each other up. We’re always lifting each other’s heads up. We’re just amazing. I have no other words for how to put it. We’re just so good.”
Taking aim at its third SWBL crown in a row, Carlisle was two games ahead of Madison in the West standings going into its Thursday game against Franklin.
Indians coach Tom Shelton said despite losing a handful of key starters from last year’s squad, expectations for success heading into the season were high.
He’s been right so far.
“We knew we’d be good. There wasn’t going to be any doubt,” Shelton said. “We had a lot returning and all of our pitching coming back. So we knew we was going to be pretty good.
“The camaraderie is great. They like each other so much. They went through all of this last year.”
Pitching has indeed been Carlisle’s mainstay through its first 13 games. Juniors Savannah Brown and Kara Adkins have a combined 75 strikeouts in the circle, while giving up an average of 1.5 runs a game.
On the offensive end, the Indians lead the SWBL with a .431 team batting average.
Adkins (.543) and junior Kristian Bottles (.529) are in the league’s top five in hitting, while junior Alaina Eldridge is batting .500 with 16 RBIs and 15 runs.
“In their mind, they’ve got unfinished business from last year,” Shelton said. “It’s a lot of fun. I never have to worry about our hitting. Even against good pitching, they just keep coming, It’s always somebody different.”
In terms of being the vocal leader, it’s typically Miller. Then the rest of the Indians join in.
“I say I bring a lot of energy to the team. I’m always talking,” Miller said following Carlisle’s 12-2 six-inning victory over Talawanda on Tuesday. “After games, my voice is always gone. My voice is gone right now. I sound like a man. I’m always talking, and I think that’s what keeps these girls up.
“When you’re quiet, in my opinion, it kind of puts a fear in yourself,” Miller added. “Talking and being energetic brings the whole team together in an atmosphere that just spreads from one person to the next. Usually what happens is that I get energetic, and then our centerfielder Ashlyn Allen, No. 11, she gets energetic. It keeps on going from there.”
“How she goes is how we go,” Tom chimed in about Miller. “She’s our leader.”
Bouncing back
Slow starts and comeback victories have given Carlisle an ambitious personality.
Talawanda forced the Indians to play from behind after the first inning on Tuesday, and Carlisle responded.
“This team has done that all year. Then they flash four or five great plays,” Shelton said. “Our girls sometimes start slow at hitting.”
The Brave scored two quick runs, then Carlisle scattered 12 unanswered from the third inning on to seal it in six innings.
“They’re in a really good place,” Talawanda coach Scott Davie said. “That’s why we picked up this game. We didn’t want to pick up a team that was just going to rollover for us. Certainly we knew that Carlisle was going to give us a great game.
“Obviously, you want to see a different result,” Davie added. “At the same time, it’s important to see the diving catches that they made and some of the things they did from the effort and hustle perspective.”
Miller said getting into a groove right away each game may take a little time for the Indians, but they eventually get there.
“Usually, the first inning, sometimes it’s hard to hit. We struggle a little bit,” Miller said. “I look at it as just getting to know the pitcher — getting to know her pitches, how fast she throws, where she throws it, where the ump is going to call it.
“The first inning that’s all it is for us,” Miller added. “The second inning, once we start going, it’s boom, boom, boom. Nonstop. It’s unreal the amount of energy that one person can bring to the rest of the team. We just pick each other up.
“Last year, we would have gotten a little bit nervous, hesitant. We would have put our foot a little back a bit. But instead, no, we put our foot forward. We were like, ‘We’re going to get this. We’re not giving up. It’s the first inning. We’re going for it.’ That’s what I love about this team.”
Shelton agreed.
“Once they kind of figure it out, they talk, they communicate with each other,” the coach said. “Once one or two of them start putting the ball into play, it just evolves.
“These girls just don’t settle, either. Like I said before, they’ve got some unfinished business to attend to.”
Quotable
“This year we have a really good chance at making it to state,” said a confident Miller. “I think it’s the fact that there isn’t any bickering between the team. Everybody picks up one another. We’re not going to put the blame on another person. As a team, you can’t do that. You have to pick each other up. We have to work together in our own way and take the blame for some stuff. With this team, that’s what we have in common.”
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