Maya Driver delivered when Central needed it most in win over East

Driver got the ultimate vote of confidence when she looked down the third base line to Indians coach Carrier Barker just before stepping back into the batter’s box with a full count.

“She was doing some dance moves,” Driver said with a laugh. “It reminded me to shake it all out and just make a play. It showed that she was confident in me.”

The left-handed hitting Driver sent the next pitch down the left field line. To hear her tell it, the ball was headed foul before being blown fair by the wind. Wade scored from second, and the Indians took the conference portion of their doubleheader from East 12-11.

Driver finished that contest 2-for-5 with two RBI. She finished the week 7-for-11 (.636) with a double, a triple and four RBI, which earned her Prep Athlete of the Week honors from WyoSports’ Cheyenne staff.

The sophomore is hitting how she is accustomed to since picking up the sport as a pre-schooler. However, that wasn’t the case earlier this season, when Driver carried a .071 average (1-of-14) into Central’s April 9 matchup with Cheyenne South.

Driver went 3-for-4 with a triple and four RBI that night. She has been the Indians’ hottest hitter ever since. Over the past 10 contests, Driver has posted a team-best .519 average (14-for-27) with two doubles, two triples, a home run and 11 RBI. She has the second-most hits of any Central player during that stretch and is tied for second in RBI.

“She’s found the confidence we’ve always had in her,” Barker said. “She’s started to believe in herself and have confidence at the plate. When she’s more relaxed as a hitter, she tends to hit better.

“That’s the reason I was dancing during that at-bat. I wanted her to relax, have fun and be confident when she stepped in there.”

Earlier this season, Driver was breaking one of the cardinal rules of playing softball because she wanted to do so well — she was trying too hard. Failure is woven into the sport’s fabric. Trying to make plays instead of capitalizing on the opportunities that arise naturally frequently results in more failure. That’s especially true for hitting.

“She wanted to do big things and make things happen, and she ended up getting off balance and swinging at everything,” Barker said. “She’s starting to find her pitch and where she likes her pitch to be.

“She’s being a lot more disciplined at the plate and not swinging at everything, thinking it’s a strike. She’s made this huge growth in a short amount of time.”

Driver had nine strikeouts through Central’s first 11 games and has totaled just four over the past 10 games. Her recent hot streak has upped her batting average to .366 (15-of-41) on the season.

She credits regularly hitting and fielding outside of Central’s practices with her 13-year-old sister, Aleah, for helping her continue to play well.

Driver is now forcing defenses to make plays in order to get her out, which is something she wasn’t doing often during her season-opening slump.

“Not every at-bat has to be a home run,” Driver said. “Putting the ball in play means something because you’re moving runners, you’re forcing the defense to make a play or you’re hyping up your team because you got a hit.”

There’s a saying about people finding out who their true friends are by who stands by them during times of adversity. Driver said she learned a lot about her teammates and coaches during her struggles at the plate.

“I know my teammates have confidence in me, they have my back and — if I don’t make a play — they’re there to pick me up and make sure I’m not worried about messing up again,” she said.

Others recognized for their efforts include:

n Brynn Bach, girls track and field, Burns: The sophomore won the 800-meter run and 100-meter hurdles and placed second in pole vault at the Zowada Invitational in Lusk. Bach was ninth in pole vault at the invitation-only Best in the West meet in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.

n Shawn Basart, Tegan Krause and Jonah Rigg, boys track and field, Cheyenne Central: Basart, a senior, won the 400-meter dash and 110-meter hurdles at the Central Invitational. He placed second in both the 110 and 300 hurdles at the Wyoming Track Classic.

Krause, a sophomore, won the 100- and 200-meter dashes at the Central Invitational. He was runner-up in the 100 and third in the 200 at the Wyoming Track Classic.

Rigg, a senior, won the 800 and 1,600 at the Central Invite. He followed that with a win in the 800 at the Track Classic.

n Nadiah Burdett, Maggie Madsen and Taliah Morris, girls track and field, Cheyenne East: Burdett, a junior, won the 100-meter hurdles and triple jump at the Central Invitational. She also placed second in triple jump and sixth in the 100 hurdles at the Wyoming Track Classic.

Madsen, a freshman, won the 1,600-meter run at the Central Invite and the 3,200 at the Wyoming Track Classic in Casper. She also placed fifth in the 800 at the Track Classic.

Morris, a senior, won the 100-meter dash at the Central Invitational. She won the 200 and long jump at the Wyoming Track Classic. Her mark of 19 feet, 7¼ inches is the new meet record.

n Aleah Brooks, McKenzie Millar, Gracie Oswald and Rylee Stephenson, softball, Cheyenne East: Brooks, a junior, was 6-for-11 with three homers and eight RBI to help the Thunderbirds go 2-2 on the week.

Millar, a sophomore, was 7-of-14 with three doubles, two home runs and seven RBI.

Oswald, a senior, went 9-for-15 with five doubles, a home run and two RBI.

Stephenson, a junior, was 7-of-17 at the plate with three doubles, a triple and three RBI. In the pitcher’s circle, Stephenson fanned 10 hitters and allowed just four earned runs across 10-1/3 innings.

n Katie Hinz and Izzy Thomas, softball, Central: Hinz, a senior, struck out 23 batters and posted a 3.41 earned-run average in 12-1/3 innings of work. She was 2-0 on the week.

Thomas, a junior, batted .778 (7-for-9) with a double, three home runs and 10 RBI. All of the homers and seven of the RBI came during a doubleheader sweep at Laramie.

n Ethan Norris, boys track and field, Burns: The senior won the 100- and 300-meter hurdles and at the Zowada Invitational in Lusk. He also was third in both hurdles events and fifth in pole vault at the invitation-only Best in the West meet in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.

n Karson Tempel, girls track and field, Central: The junior won long jump at the Central Invitational. She also won triple jump and placed fourth in long jump at the Wyoming Track Classic.