DAHLONEGA — Two hours before gametime, the batting cage that sits just outside the home dugout at Haynes & Carolyn Hill Stadium is active.
The only thing drowning out Justin Moore’s song, “Small Town USA,” is the ping of a ball hitting an aluminum bat, and the smack of that same ball making contact with leather after being tossed back from whence it came.
Five girls sit together behind the player taking pitches or hitting off a tee. Other than a few quiet giggles and a whisper here and there, talking is at a premium. With their eye black and cleats on, their green jerseys tucked in — it’s the day after St. Patrick’s Day — and their socks pulled up, the North Georgia College & State University softball team prepares.
Relaxed, yet focused, the Lady Saints are doing so not only for the day’s intraconference game against USC-Aiken, but also to maintain a level.
Last spring, North Georgia had its best season in the program’s history. The Lady Saints finished with a 50-5 record, Peach Belt Conference regular season and tournament titles, NCAA Southeast Regional and Super Regional titles and a berth in the Division II Women’s College World Series, where they were beaten by Lock Haven University (Pa.) in the national semifinals.
This year, the Lady Saints are the No. 1-ranked team in the nation and undefeated at 31-0 (they were 23-0 on March 18, the day they played a doubleheader against USC-Aiken).
They’ve been No. 1 for four straight weeks, a unanimous choice for three, and are the only unbeaten softball team left in Division II.
“We never talk about it,” said sophomore outfielder Pilar Harden, emphatically shaking her head. “We don’t talk about rankings ever because where we’re ranked right now doesn’t matter.”
It’s clear after talking to North Georgia softball coach Mike Davenport, where Harden, who attended North Oconee High School and is currently batting .347 with 14 RBIs, and her teammates get their mentality.
“We don’t look ahead and we don’t look behind,” Davenport said. “We only look at today.”
Senior designated hitter Leslee Smith echoed her coach’s sentiments, “We knew we’d be good,” said Smith, who’s currently leading the team with seven home runs while batting .372. “But we take this season like we did last season: one game at a time.”
THEY CALL HIM COACH: The positioning of Haynes and Carolyn Hill Stadium, nicknamed “The Hill,” is indicative of the school its affiliated with.
North Georgia College & State University rests at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains; the home of the Lady Saints rests at the foothills of Bob Stein Stadium, home of the 16th-ranked Saints baseball team.
Separating the two venues is sloping ground with a few plateaus, perfectly suited for an overview.
During the Regionals and Super Regionals last year, the plateaus were filled with people sitting in camping chairs, watching over the Lady Saints as they won their way to the Division II College World Series.
On March 18, for North Georgia’s game against USC-Aiken, two people occupied two camping chairs and had one sign that read “Atta Baby:” the Lady Saints chant after a teammate gets a hit.
One group witnessed history, the other two a simple doubleheader sweep, but they both have something in common: They came to The Hill because of what Davenport has built.
It was 13 years ago that Davenport came to North Georgia as an assistant women’s basketball coach and 10 years ago that he took over the then NAIA Lady Saints softball program.
In both the NAIA and Division II levels — the Lady Saints moved to Division II in 2006 — Davenport has led North Georgia to four conference titles and four national tournament appearances, all with one philosophy.
“This has been an ongoing process,” said Davenport, who has a record of 390-135 as the softball coach for North Georgia. “Our goal is to play to our potential, not get a certain number of wins.
“If we do our job, play to our potential, we’ll be one of the better teams in the country.”
At 2:30 p.m. on the day his team was playing USC-Aiken, Davenport entered the cage to toss batting practice. He’d just finished lining the field, watching over a few of his players as they raked the infield and changing into his gameday attire in his truck.
With a smile on his face he simply said, “This is the life of a Division II coach.”
Davenport is exact and disciplined, and the way his players react to him makes it clear they’ve learned his ways.
As soon as he enters the cage, girls move about picking up balls sweeping the bullpen; and the collective posture changes from slumped to straight.
There’s an interesting contrast, however, that shines a little light on the relationship between the coach and his players. He barks at his Lady Saints to tuck their shirts in as the USC-Aiken players come into view, yet some of those he’s instructing are unobtrusively dancing to the song “YMCA.”
“We want the kids to be confident and relaxed and play with a little bit of swagger,” Davenport said. “But we have to respect the opponent and the game.”
THE LADY SAINTS: Whether the girls are playing at home or away, a sign hangs in their dugout that reads, “Play like a champion today.
”Each team member taps it twice after being introduced and before running onto the field, and beneath it, Davenport perches when his team is on defense.
It’s a subtle reminder to not only well represent the school and game with their play, but to not look ahead on the journey to success.
“It isn’t that losing isn’t an option,” said Katelyn Ostopick, who serves as the team’s assistant athletic trainer. “They just refuse to do it.”
The shining example of that is junior pitcher Sarah Phillips.
Phillips finished her 2009 campaign with a 39-3 record and a 1.39 ERA. This season, she’s 25-0 with a .76 ERA.
“She’s a horse,” said Davenport of his ace who currently has 179 strikeouts. “In the game of fast pitch, when you have someone in the circle that can get it done, you’ve got a chance to win every game.”
And win every game the Lady Saints have thus far, but that in and of itself isn’t the story of the team.
In order to be part of the Lady Saints softball program one has to be invested, and not just in playing like a champion and refusing to lose.
The bathrooms stationed in both dugouts are cleaned by the players. They have fundraisers and sell ads in the media guide to provide uniforms, equipment and travel money for each other. The condition of the field they play on and The Hill as a whole is on them.
“What we have is a result of a lot of hard work,” Davenport said. “These girls have to buy into this program, but more importantly, they have to buy into this university.
“If they don’t, we don’t make it and they know that because when you bring in quality kids, you’re going to have quality results.”
The work put in has another effect, however: it keeps the No. 1 team in the land grounded.
“This team is very down to earth,” said sophomore starting third baseman Hilary Cox, who is currently second on the team with five home runs. “We’re very laid back and very much so a family.”
It’s been said that attitude reflects leadership and for North Georgia, that couldn’t be more true.
In between cheers to distract the USC-Aiken pitcher and encourage their teammate batting, the Lady Saints talk. Led by senior Jessica Skeels, who wasn’t playing that particular game on March 18, each batter who comes back to the dugout is instructed on where the infielders and outfielders are placed, the tendencies of the pitcher and the way they could correct mistakes made while at bat.
“You know who the leaders are on this team,” said former Buford High standout and current North Georgia Lady Saints freshman Whitney Holman. “They’re very vocal and play a big role in keeping us in line.
“But they’re also so encouraging, they don’t ever put us down.”
Why would they? Skeels, along with fellow seniors Smith, Laura Voyles and Courtney McGuire have been invested the longest and understand that team equals success.
“We have great leadership,” said Davenport of his seniors. “They have these girls playing the game the way we think and hope it’s supposed to be played.”