Softball notes: Lyons Township’s Peyton O’Flaherty masters mental game, swings hot bat to lead young team

Peyton O’Flaherty has adopted a practical way to make sure she maintains a positive mindset.

Every time the Lyons Township junior makes an error, she scoops up dirt off the infield, squeezes it and tells herself to let it go. Suggested by a travel coach, it’s a practice O’Flaherty applies in the batter’s box as well.

“When I let it go, that’s when I know I’m ready for the next play,” O’Flaherty said. “Every pitch is a new play, so let’s go. I’ve suggested it to the girls that I play with, and it’s helped me even if I don’t do it every time. It’s just a reminder to let things go.”

O’Flaherty said she used to struggle with the mental side of the game. Now she’s able to better deal with it and is a more confident player.

She sure seems to be playing like a girl bursting with confidence this spring.

A leader of a young Lyons team for first-year head coach Megan Pyles, O’Flaherty is batting a sizzling .560 on the season with a .635 on-base percentage. Of her 14 hits, five are doubles and two are homers. She has 15 RBIs, 12 runs and five walks.

“She is very patient at the plate. She knows her strike zone and stays true to it,” Pyles said. “She goes up there with a plan, looking for one specific pitch to drive hard. She is not swinging out of her shoes. She is a patient hitter that knows what she wants.”

Pyles considers O’Flaherty a power hitter who makes a lot of hard contact up the middle.

“Honestly, it’s just practicing over and over again, muscle memory, knowing the pitches that will be thrown and having a selective strike zone,” O’Flaherty said. “For me, I mainly just think about what I want. I know I’m a better hitter with an inside pitch. Unless it’s a right-there pitch where I can get it outside, I’m looking for that inside pitch that I can have the best shot of getting.”

Pyles, new to Lyons, didn’t know much about any of her softball players when she took the job. The first thing she learned about O’Flaherty was that she was committed to Tennessee-Chattanooga. O’Flaherty and Tess Meyer sat in on Pyles’ interview for the job.

O’Flaherty quickly has developed into a leader for a young Lions team.

“We have a lot of girls new to varsity and seeing how incredibly talented Peyton is offensively, she doesn’t even have to say much for kids to look up to her. When she says something, it’s encouraging,” Pyles said. “We had a freshman second baseman make an error the other day and Peyton came up to her and said, ‘Shake if off.’

“She is always encouraging, whether people make mistakes or are just not having a hot day. She’s an all-around great kid.”

O’Flaherty reasons she’s been in the younger girls’ shoes and is only doing her best to make them feel like they belong.

“It’s really just about making them comfortable with all the girls, doing a lot of team-building activities, having that chemistry is going to help you play better,” O’Flaherty said. “When I was first on varsity, I was very intimidated by the other girls. It takes time to get used to that.”

O’Flaherty also is acclimating to a new, but not unfamiliar, position for her high school team. She started the season at third base, but when Lyons moved Meyer from shortstop to catcher, O’Flaherty slid over to shortstop.

“For travel, I’m primarily a third baseman and middle infield. I’m comfortable with all those positions,” O’Flaherty said. “Shortstop I’ve played the longest amount of time. It was always going to be new playing with the other girls.”

Peak performances

Downers Grove South’s Ella Cushing has homered in four consecutive games and the Mustangs are riding a five-game winning streak. Cushing is 4-0 in the circle over the past week. Mustangs teammates Gabby Ruchniewicz is 7 for 15, Addison Yurchak is 6 for 13 and Grace Barry is 7 for 13 in the past week.

Downers Grove North’s lineup has heated up with 46 hits in three wins. The Trojans beat Sandburg 11-1 in five innings, Benet 11-1 in six innings and Hinsdale Central 13-0 in five innings. During that stretch, three Downers Grove North pitchers have posted a 0.44 ERA over 16 innings with 20 strikeouts and just nine hits and three walks allowed.

With a 3-for-3 night with a homer and two triples April 26, Wheaton Academy’s Audrey Lopatka was hitting .600 on the season with a .655 on-base percentage. Teammate Moriah Husted was batting .600 with a .723 on-base percentage.