Even in reduced role, Knoch grad Fischer proving valuable to IUP softball team
Share this post:
IUP softball coach Shawna Bellaud remembers the moment vividly.
During the past offseason, rising senior pitcher Amanda Fischer came to her and said she wasn’t sure if she could continue playing softball. Years in the game had taken their toll physically, and some nagging aches and pains made Fischer reluctant to continue.
But she wanted to continue being part of the program, so the Knoch grad spent the summer as sort of a de facto coach, helping out freshmen pitchers Kendall Young and Olivia Hillegas.
It wasn’t long, Bellaud said, before the urge to play started prodding Fischer again. So when it came time to start preparations for the 2024 season, Fischer returned to her customary role on the pitching staff.
The one difference this season is Bellaud, in her sixth season as the Crimson Hawks’ coach, has been mindful of Fischer’s workload. Through IUP’s first 20 games — the Crimson Hawks went 14-6 — Fischer worked only 8⅔ innings over three appearances. But her outings were more about quality than quantity as she posted a minuscule 0.81 ERA.
“I think she’s looking healthier than she did last year at this time probably because we have monitored and lowered the amount of pitches she’s throwing,” Bellaud said. “… I actually think with kind of resting, she’s throwing pretty hard, too.”
Bellaud said she sees Fischer filling a variety of roles. In one of her two starts, she was so efficient with her pitches, Bellaud allowed her to stay in the circle for five innings. Fischer is being used in relief, too, something she has done periodically throughout her career.
“It’s honestly not that big of a change,” she said. “There is a bit of a mentality change from starting and getting the game going to now closing and just getting the game over. … I know I have solid pitchers who are capable of starting a game and doing perfectly fine, and I can come in whenever I am needed.”
Young and Hillegas already have proven they can pitch effectively at the college level. Young, through the first 20 games, was 5-2 with a 1.88 ERA, and Hillegas was 2-0. Highlands grad Jaycee Haidze, a sophomore, also is seeing some time in the circle. Last season, she threw only 3⅔ innings over two appearances, but in 2024, in two appearances, one of which was a start, she has thrown nine innings.
Fischer said she has enjoyed helping the younger pitchers in their adjustment to the college game.
“Definitely have taken on a leadership role within the pitching staff,” Fischer said. “I’ve been very open to helping these freshmen as well as these underclassmen with their pitching experience as well as helping them mentally and physically through the game.”
Bellaud said Fischer’s best asset when she is on the mound might be her demeanor. Never one to get overly anxious or show a lot of emotion, her even-keeled approach permeates the rest of the defense.
Even in the counsel she gives to the younger players, Fischer tries to impress upon them the importance of not letting mistakes get into their heads.
“I’ve related in my career how I have had bad situations and gotten out of them in games,” she said. “You’re not going to have a good game every time, so I make sure to relay to them that it’s not going to be great every time, and that’s OK.”
And, make no mistake, Bellaud said. Fischer still can pitch. As valuable as she is as a sounding board and example-setter for the younger players, she remains a valuable part of what happens between the lines.
Not one to overpower hitters, Fischer uses primarily a curveball and changeup to keep hitters guessing.
“She can throw the curveball on the normal side of the plate, and she throws it back door,” Bellaud said. “If she’s got that changeup and just the curveball itself, we’re going to be in a really good place.
“She kind of can move it height-wise, too. Not only is she moving it east to west, she’s kind of getting it north and south, too.”
Fischer said she attributes her success with the changeup and curveball to paring down her pitch repertoire. Whereas many pitchers — even in baseball — try to vary their arsenal as much as possible, Fischer has figured out what was most effective for her and worked to perfect it.
It seems to be working. In 8⅔ innings over her three appearances, she struck out six and didn’t issue a walk.
IUP will need Fischer and the rest of the pitching staff to continue to perform at their current level — a cumulative 2.93 ERA through — now that the PSAC portion of the schedule has arrived. The Crimson Hawks were picked to finish sixth in the nine-team West Division, but Fischer and Bellaud believe the team has the chops to exceed that prediction.
Offensively, IUP came through its nonconference schedule hitting .303, with a host of WPIAL talent leading the way. Among them are Haidze, who was hitting .273 with a team-high 13 RBIs through the nonconference schedule, and her fellow Highlands alumna Jess Cekada (.311, two homers, nine RBIs).
They are part of a super sophomore class along with Madison Pikula (South Allegheny), who has scored a team-leading 20 runs, and Maddie Griffin (Ligonier Valley), who is hitting .347 with 12 RBIs.
“I see a lot of potential for this team in the long run,” Fischer said. “Granted, it’s a young team with me being the only senior. … But I see the chemistry in the dugout, on the field, even off the field. We all get along incredibly. I think that’s going to benefit us.”