Class In Session For SFCC Softball

AVON PARK - Throw out the stat book, and forget the R's, H's and E's.
Fourth-year South Florida Community College softball coach Carlos Falla is taking his team to softball school, and so far, most of his girls are earning straight A's.
"We're not really looking at stats, because at this point, those numbers can be misleading," Falla said. "So we're basically doing a scorecard for each girl, grading them and seeing who's consistent. They get a grade for each day, and when we're done with the fall, we'll sit down and go through all those sheets."

The Panthers were perfect pupils this past weekend, pulling off a sweep of the Sarasota Heat traveling team, 4-2 and 8-1.

Freshman outfielder Cassidy Faircloth had two doubles on the afternoon, freshman infielder Megan Randolph added two more hits, and freshman Lora Helton and sophomore Kayla Finney each stole two bases on a windy afternoon at Panther Field to lead SFCC, which now boasts an 8-1 fall record.

Weather aside, Falla said his team hit well, and his pitchers - sophomore Addie Tallman, freshman Lindsey Andree and freshman Caitlin Houk - were stellar in the circle.

"The wind was nasty," Falla said. "And that doesn't play well with pitchers, especially when it hits them in the back. But they hit their locations and spun the ball well."

Falla said his evaluation process will run through the early part of winter, and that his lineup likely won't be set until conference play begins in February. He noted the team is working on specific skill sets each week at practice, with this week's focus on slap bunts, hit-and-runs and suicide squeezes. He's also asked a group of his hitters to watch pitching practice from the bleachers in order to pick up not only the spin of the ball, but the subtle differences in delivery pitchers exhibit for different pitches.

Such schooling, Falla hopes, will pay off between the lines when the games start counting.

"The team's responded well to everything we've thrown at them," Falla said. "We always have a group of kids who stay after practice for more work and they're always asking good questions.

"We're pretty smart for how young we are, we just want them to stay hungry."

The Panthers travel to Lake Wales Saturday for a doubleheader with the Warriors. First pitch is set for 2 p.m.