Fahey Bank Athlete of the Month: Pleasant's Katie Jordan turns elite as a senior

MARION — Katie Jordan was a good softball player as an underclassman. The Pleasant outfielder turned into an elite player as a senior.

"I’d definitely say I changed my mindset a lot going into this year," Jordan said. "It’s my senior year, so I’m going to go all-out and no regrets. I played pretty lighthearted but was still pretty focused. I kept the same focus every game and that helped me."

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The numbers don't lie.

As a freshman on a 14-win squad, she batted .356 with 29 runs and 11 RBIs, and over her next two seasons when the Spartans collectively won just five games, her stats were solid as she hit .364 with 14 runs as a sophomore and .282 with 14 runs and 14 steals as a junior.

But this season was different. The roster changed and talented newcomers were added to the squad like Faith Staley, Kylie Eastep, Peyton Simpkins and Quinn Wilson. It no longer felt like she had to score nine runs in a single at-bat.

"You don’t have to worry as much when you have girls that have more talent," she said. "Everybody got along so well. They meshed so good. We have a really young team, so they are going to do great things in the next couple years. It felt like a weight off my shoulders. I didn’t feel like I had to do as much to overcompensate because there was talent almost everywhere on the field."

Pleasant senior softball outfielder Katie Jordan was named Fahey Bank Athlete of the Month for April among Marion County girls.

A freer Jordan was a productive Jordan.

Her batting average moved to .506 her senior year as she finished with 40 hits, 30 runs, 21 RBIs, eight doubles and two triples and an area-best 30 stolen bases.

"Katie Jordan was our team captain this year and truly stood in that role wholeheartedly," Pleasant coach Hannah Wilson said. "She was our leader and our leadoff batter and our offensive stronghold, getting on base consistently and also doing a good job of hitting runners in from that leadoff position. In the outfield, she really shines in making her teammates batter. She’s a well-rounded player."

Following her lead, the Spartans went from one win in 2023 to 11 victories this year.

How did Jordan improve?

Jordan played girls tennis for her mother Kirsten at Pleasant where she was the team's No. 2 singles player for much of her career, but her No. 1 sport was always softball.

"Softball is the one I really worked hard in the offseason," she said. "I went to the gym every day because I knew I had to get stronger. It was hitting lessons two or three times a week and that helped me a lot."

She was also a veteran of the travel circuits with the Laser Orange program that played elite softball in the offseason.

"The relationships I made with the girls was awesome," she added. "Even though it’s pretty much a game of failure, I did like the drive to do great. I tried other sports, but they weren’t really my thing. It was something about softball that I really liked to do."

As a sophomore, the Spartans played 21 games. Last year they managed to get on the field just 17 times. This year Pleasant competed in 28 games.

"Mr. (Mike) Lindsey (Pleasant's athletic director) did a really good job of rescheduling things fast and not having to wait too long to play. Shelby was rough having to wait those two weeks, but we consistently played more games. We played 10 more games than we played (in a season) in all my four years, which really helped," Jordan said.

Having games regularly helped keep her rhythm at the plate.

"It was a lot easier and a lot of fun. We were in more games and that helps, too," she said. "It helps that we were scheduling so many more games because we were a lot better. It was better to get in the swing of things and keep going and keep playing hard."

According to Wilson, having a trust in her teammates to get hits and make plays was evident.

"It looked like some of that pressure was off. I’d say in the first half of the season, especially, she was playing and having fun and doing her thing," the coach said. "As a leader, she would rally them up. She was the first one to show up and the last one to leave. She was walking around the outfield and infield picking up trash and making sure all of our jobs get done."

Fahey Bank Award winner for April

Jordan earned her first Fahey Bank Athlete of the Month Award for Marion County girls in April. During the month, she hit .553 with an on-base percentage of .656 while stealing 20 bases. She led the Mid Ohio Athletic Conference in all three of those categories in April.

"I’m thankful and glad she’s being recognized. She has definitely put in a lot of work in the offseason and had a great season," Wilson said.

Getting a Fahey Bank Award was always on the goal sheet for Jordan.

"Go out and have no regrets," she said of her mindset toward achieving it. "When I got that (award), I was jumping up and down. I was so excited. It’s really tough to get and a lot of good athletes have gotten it, so I was super excited. I got nominated for it last year, and I was super excited just to get nominated. A lot of really good athletes get it and that’s a known thing and pretty select."

Count Jordan among the select as she improved from good to elite.

rmccurdy@gannett.com

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