John Raffel
Sports Scene
Alesha Davis has been doing the job in the pitching circle for Mount Pleasant’s softball team, and her excellent performance has been no surprise for Oiler coach Ted McIntyre.
Davis’ older sister, Chelsea Davis, is a scholarship player at Saginaw Valley State University.
“She did almost everything for us,” McIntyre recalled.
Alesha, a junior, has started out 6-0. She threw a six-hitter against Bay City Central in a 8-5 win on April 19 and survived some wildness with seven walks. She has also pitched some no-hitters so far this season.
In her second year on varsity, she has shown steady improvement from a sophomore season in which she threw in about five games.
“I pitched a little bit last year,” she said. “It was against not-as-good teams.”
This year, Davis has gotten her chance to see some innings and is making the most of it.
“I’m really happy with how I’m pitching so far,” she said. “The first Saturday, I had a no hitter against Shepherd. They’re a pretty good team. The second game, I was tired, but I pitched pretty well in that one too.”
The key behind Davis’ success hasn’t been complicated.
“I’m not as fast as I’d like to be, but I try to keep the ball moving,” she said.
Davis said her riseball is probably her best pitch so far.
She usually does both games on the mound. “Sometimes I worry about tiring out my arm,” she said. “But I know it mentally pushes me to condition my arm. I’ve been preparing for that. I understand that was going to be my role this year.”
It was a busy off-season for Davis. “I went to a lot of open gyms and we have a batting cage out in the garage where I pitch to my dad,” she said. “So once or twice a week, I’m practicing up until the season started. I played on a summer team too.”
Davis has been pitching for about seven years.
“My dad pushed me to start, and my sister has been my inspiration since she’s been pitching pretty well since she started high school,” Davis said. She added that when it comes to pitching, “my sister and I are a lot alike. My sister taught me a lot of pitches.”
Davis is also the leadoff hitter for Mount Pleasant this season.
“Last year, I was about .340,” she said. “I’d like to hit .350. That will be a little higher than last year. I’m kind of a contact hitter. I try to get on any way I can. If I hit it in the infield, a lot of times I’m able to beat it out, too.”
Hitting was an early-season concern for McIntyre. In the Clare Invitational, the Oilers went 2-1.
“We only scored two runs the whole tournament,” McIntyre said. “We won two games 1-0 and 1-0.”
The Oilers also lost 7-0 to Bullock Creek.
“At the end, we have to get more offense,” he said.
Davis agreed.
“We’ve struggled hitting a little bit,” she said. “But we’re looking to come back, work really hard this this season, and pick that up.”