By Dan Stillwell
Filling out the first spot in his lineup card has been easy for Independence softball coach Tom Poe the past three years.
“No. 3, Sheena McKinney, 8 (center field).”
He’ll have that luxury just one more season before McKinney moves on to Fairmont State University, with whom she recently signed a letter-of-intent.
“Sheena’s been an excellent center fielder and leadoff hitter,” said Poe, who has coached more than a few good players since starting the program at Independence in 1988.
“She started center field her ninth-grade year and she’s improved,” Poe said. “(At the plate) she hits line drives, keeps the ball out of the air and uses her speed.”
Watching McKinney chase down balls few other area center fielders would get, it’s obvious she doesn’t just play softball.
She loves it.
“It’s my passion,” he said. “I grew up around it. My parents played it, and I would goof off with them after games. That’s what got me started.”
She’s worked hard on slap-hitting and bunting, which takes advantage of her considerable speed.
Last season, McKinney hit away more for the 20-9 Patriots, who finished runner-up to Shady Spring in the Class AA Region 3, Section 1 tournament.
Her batting averaged suffered, dropping some 20 points.
“My freshman and sophomore years, it was bunt, bunt, bunt,” she said. “I hope to slap more this year. I like the small-ball game.
“I want to get my batting average up and get my speed better.”
Poe wants her to be more decisive in taking plays in left and right-center field.
“That comes with maturity, and she will do that this year,” he said.
McKinney, a two-time honorable mention all-stater, considered West Virginia State, Mountain State University and the University of Charleston before settling on Fairmont State.
“I felt that was where I belonged,” she said. “I liked the facility and the people. I went to a camp there and the girls treated me real nice.”
The Falcons were 17-11 last spring in the West Virginia Conference, good for a tie for sixth place in the standings, and were 30-23 overall.
Poe said she’ll be missed at Independence, and not just for softball.
“Sheena has been a great all-around athlete,” he said. “She was a stellar member of the volleyball team and an excellent student and representative of the school.”
— E-mail:
dstillwell@register-herald.com
