McHenry coach Mikaela Buss has noticed a big difference in Natalie Bender this year.

You don’t have to look too hard to find it.

“I’ve seen a lot more smiles from her, which is great,” Buss said of the Warriors senior right-handed pitcher. “She’s really come into herself these past two years. Way more confident.”

Bender had plenty to smile about Wednesday against Crystal Lake South, striking out seven and blasting two home runs against 20 mph winds. She also had a double and finished a perfect 3 for 3 with five RBIs as McHenry earned a 10-3 win in McHenry.

Both of the home runs for Bender, who also bats right-handed, went to right field. The first was a two-run shot that started out carrying to right-center field before the wind pushed it almost behind the right-field foul pole.

Batting fifth in the lineup, Bender is one of the Warriors’ biggest power bats.

“Honestly, I was just looking to make contact. That’s it,” said Bender, whose two-run homer in the fourth gave McHenry a 5-1 lead and three-run homer in the fifth made it 8-1. “I just go into the box and hope to hit something. Just make contact for the team.

“She does everything the right way,” Buss added. “I have a little more hands-on approach with the pitchers and catchers this year, so I think she’s let go of some of the pressure she’s felt from past years and just know to throw. That’s all she’s got to worry about.

“I think when we’re smiling on defense, it leads to what she’s doing at the plate with two bombs for us. That was not on our bingo card that we were going to hit any home runs today. She had two of them, that’s pretty incredible.”

McHenry (5-1, 1-1 FVC) was coming off a tough 7-6 loss to Dundee-Crown in its FVC opener Tuesday. Through two conference games, the Warriors have put up 16 runs on 18 hits.

“It was a quick turnaround. We were upset about the loss yesterday, but we took the night and we all came back,” said senior center fielder Lyla Oeffling, who scored twice and threw out a runner tagging up at second base. “We matched at school, we were ready to play, and we came here with the mentality to have fun and play and not think about yesterday.”

Oeffling said Bender’s poise in the circle rubs off on the rest of the team.

“She keeps us calm, for sure” Oeffling said. “She’s, I guess you would say, nonchalant in the circle, which I think helps the rest of us. We’re here to back her up.”

South loaded the bases against Bender in the seventh inning with one out, but she fired her seventh strikeout and got a grounder to second baseman Danica McCarthy to end the game. For the game, Bender scattered four hits and walked two, throwing 72 of 103 pitches for strikes in the complete game.

Charlee Cape (run, two steals) and Elyse Fullington (3 for 3, steal) had a double apiece for McHenry while McCarthy stole two bases and Oeffling scored a pair of runs. Elly Ernst and Izzie Townsend both had one RBI.

South catcher Georgi Austin ripped a two-run single in the sixth inning, and shortstop Riley Bard had an RBI single in the top of the first. The Gators (1-3, 0-2), who opened the year with a 15-3 win over Woodstock, have lost three in a row.

South coach Sara Markelonis believes the Gators aren’t far from turning the corner. On defense, they retired four McHenry players on the base paths, including a strong relay from left fielder Giada Cervantes to Barda at shortstop to Austin at catcher in the third inning, which kept the score 3-1 at the time.

“I think people aren’t going to be expecting what we’re bringing to the table,” said Markelonis, whose Gators went 2-24 last season. “We’re a strong hitting team and I think we’re just starting to figure it out and get it all together. We’re starting to produce, and I think others are starting to see it, as well.

“I’m kind of excited to face everybody, not only once, but twice, just to kind of show off what we got.”

Bender, who since the end of last year started to incorporate a rise ball to her pitch selection, believes a happy Warriors team can do it all.

“I think this is our happiest, most confident bunch we’ve had,” Bender said. “It makes it a really enjoyable time to come to practice, come to games every day and just be here with everyone. Everyone’s always laughing no matter what. Even after yesterday’s loss. It’s just a really good environment to be around.”