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Canfield junior Rachel Tinkey impressive on and off the field
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Canfield junior Rachel Tinkey keeps her eye on the ball while batting against Howland on May 1. By the end of this season, Tinkey, the Cardinals’ shortstop, will have earned six varsity letters in softball and basketball while maintaining a 4.026 GPA.
Canfield junior Rachel Tinkey impressive on and off the field
By Tom Williams
CANFIELD
For someone planning to major in bio-mechanical engineering, numbers are important. Canfield High School junior Rachel Tinkey’s athletic numerals add up to an impressive total.
By the end of the school year, the Canfield junior shortstop will have six varsity letters earned in basketball and softball. As a freshman, she was Canfield’s starting point guard and shortstop.
Her teams have played in five district finals and won three of them (two in basketball, one in softball).
She’s been on winning teams 110 times (59-19 record in basketball, 51-20 in softball) in five-and-a-half seasons.
More importantly, her grade-point average is 4.026.
“Rachel is a phenomenal young lady,” said Ray Melewski, Canfield’s softball head coach. “Very hard working, very unselfish.
“She’s a very team-oriented player, I couldn’t ask for a better athlete to coach,” Melewski said. “I’ve never seen a better shortstop.”
In her first two basketball seasons, the Cardinals earned Division II regional trips to Barberton. This past season, the Cardinals moved up to Division I and lost to North Canton Hoover in the district final.
“I’ve coached a lot of special girls at Canfield High School and Rachel is right in the top of that whole pack,” said Pat Pavlansky, who recently retired as Canfield’s girls basketball coach. “She’s the kind of kid who will come in early and stay late, not just for herself.
“Everybody loves Rachel, how hard she works, how much she cares,” Pavlansky said.
Tinkey’s varsity career didn’t begin with smooth sailing. In her debut as point guard in a foundation game, Pavlansky recalls his team lost to a good Norton team by about 35 points.
“By the end of the season, we went to the regional,” Pavlansky said. “A lot of that was due to her growth.
“And she doesn’t want the limelight.”
In her first two softball seasons, Canfield played Poland in the Division II district final. The Cards lost the first time, but won the second.
This year’s softball squad has no seniors so Tinkey is the most experienced player. It’s much different from two years ago.
“Being a freshman [starter] was intimidating,” Tinkey said. “The juniors that year kind of took me under their wing and showed me the ropes.
“Basketball kind of eased into softball because I had a lot of [the same teammates].”
Tinkey cited Sarah Vrabel (Class of 2012) and Abby Baker (2013) as two who helped her find her comfort zone as a varsity player.
“I had a ton of talent around me and that made it a lot easier,” Tinkey said. “They knew what they were doing and pick me up on the mistakes I was making.
“It was incredible having great seniors to help me work out the kinks.”
Adapting on the court was a challenge.
“Learning the pace of the game after coming up from eighth grade, playing with people who were 18 years old, learning how to adjust to the strength factor and the pace,” Tinkey said of playing varsity. “Learning how to play with older people was something I needed.”
Growing up, Tinkey said she only once played in an older age bracket. She was 14 playing with a 16-under travel squad.
“I played with [Poland’s] Taylor Miokovic — she’s one of my good friends,” said Tinkey of the Bulldogs’ senior slugger who has a scholarship to Eastern Illinois.
A basketball injury to Baker opened the door for Tinkey to start at shortstop two seasons ago. Melewski said Baker was the Cardinals’ shortstop in 2011.
“She couldn’t play the first five or six games, so we went with Rachel,” Melewski said. “Rachel grabbed a hold of it and she never let go.
“Abby was a real team player because she wasn’t upset — she knew the type of player Rachel was.”
Her diamond skills aren’t surprising — her father Bob is a Austintown Fitch graduate who played four seasons of minor-league baseball before becoming a Canfield teacher and junior varsity boys basketball coach.
She says her mother Tina is her biggest fan.
“She is incredibly supportive,” said Rachel, noting that her parents met when her dad injured his leg.
“My dad blew out his knee and she was the MRI tech,” she said.
Looking ahead, Tinkey said she’s not sure what college she will attend or if she will drop a sport. She spends her summers playing travel softball.
“I love both of them,” Tinkey said of softball and basketball. “I just go with whatever is in season.
“I want to keep sports a part of my life. My dad has been a big influence. Whatever I choose to play, I think I will be happy with.”