GROWTH ON THE MOUND Pitcher is team's leader

Marissa Bartholomew isthe lone senior starterfor the Boardman Highsoftball team.
By BRIAN RICHESSON
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
BOARDMAN -- When Marissa Bartholomew turned 16 years old, she was driven more by softball than by getting her driver's license.
"I didn't have time to go through that whole process, so I put that on hold while I was playing softball," said Bartholomew, a 5-foot-8 senior right-handed pitcher on the Boardman High team. "It wasn't that important right [then] in my life. I figured I could always get that."
Bartholomew is the lone senior starter for coach Bill Amero's Spartans (11-3), the top-ranked team in Division I and last season's state runner-up.
"She's not a loud, boisterous kid," Amero said. "She provides quiet leadership."
Confidence rises: When Bartholomew is on the mound, the Spartans know their chance of winning increases.
"A lot of people look up to her," junior catcher Julie Raybuck said. "She's been here since her freshman year when the team wasn't as good until now when we've been to state."
Because she's had that one-year advantage on her teammates throughout her high school career, Bartholomew has adjusted to the feeling.
"I know I have to be a leader, but I don't always think I'm the only senior starter," she said. "We're all friends. I don't think like, 'You're a sophomore.' "
A three-year captain and letter-winner, Bartholomew has started nine of Boardman's 14 games this season, compiling a 7-2 record with a 1.08 earned-run average and five shutouts.
Those numbers reveal the growth of a pitcher who wasn't always in control.
Settling down: "She had difficulty her freshman and sophomore year with some control problems," Amero said. "She's really worked hard over the years, and she blossomed last year as a junior."
Bartholomew had a 20-3 record as a junior. Her growth comes from that strong work ethic and the tutelage of her pitching coach, Mike Dahringer.
"Most of my success is from him helping me," said Bartholomew, who throws eight different pitches. "He's helped me develop most of my pitches. Besides that, he's helped me with my mental game."
Dahringer, who currently coaches 75 players, has worked with Bartholomew for the past five years, during which time she went "from a tall, gangly 13-year-old who use to fall over her own two feet, into a powerful, competitive high school pitcher," he said.
That development impressed Dahringer.
"I might be more proud of Marissa than any kid I've coached," he said, "simply because she challenged for the job of being the No. 1 pitcher on probably the best softball team in the area.
"It isn't given to you; you have to earn that."
Bartholomew said, "I think I'm a good pitcher because I can hit the corners with all of my pitches; that really keeps hitters off balance. I also have a strong mental part to my game -- I don't really show expression."
But Bartholomew can do more than pitch. The No. 3 batter in Boardman's lineup, she has recorded an average close to .400
"She likes being the No. 1 pitcher, but she doesn't have to be," Amero said. "She knows we're going to give her the ball in big games, and she likes that. But she's not one-dimensional."
A look ahead: Bartholomew plans to continue her softball career in college -- Dahringer calls her a Division I-type player -- but she remains undecided on a school and major.
Before that, however, Bartholomew has her sights set on helping Boardman reach the state tournament for the second straight year.
After a loss to Hilliard Darby in the title game last year, the Spartans have some unfinished business that remains.
"I didn't even expect it. It was a big surprise," Bartholomew said of last season's run to Ashland.
"No one thought we'd be there," she said. "No one even knew of us. We were the underdog. We made it to Ashland, and everyone was like, 'Who is this team?' "
Most likely, Ohio is aware of Boardman this season. Teams will see the Spartans coming, and Bartholomew will be leading the pack.