FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University senior softball standout Brooke Short/Hurt has been named this week’s Longwood University Female Athlete of the Week. The veteran pitcher made five appearances in the circle, collecting four wins, including shutouts against St. Francis, Bucknell and Stony Brook. In the Lancers' most closely contested win of the weekend against Stony Brook on Feb. 24, she turned in a complete-game performance with just one hit for the opposition. Short posted a perfect 0.00 ERA and totaled 15 strikeouts in 24.2 innings of work last week, allowing only seven hits and a pair of unearned runs. The 5-5 southpaw was also a threat at the plate, tallying at least one hit in all six of the squad's games. She went 8-for-15 (.533) at the dish, including five multiple-base hits. She logged her first home run of the season against Stony Brook on Feb. 24. Short, who added six runs, five RBI and three walks to her stats line for the week, accumulated a .619 on base percentage and a 1.067 slugging percentage. Short was named this week’s Big South Conference/The Crons Brand Pitcher of the Week and the College Sports Madness Big South Player of the Week, as well.
Question and Answer Session with Brooke Short and Ashley Robbins
AR: What did you do to prepare for this season coming off of shoulder surgery last year?
BS: The therapy was definitely a big part of it. Right after the surgery, I was in a sling for about six weeks and then I had to do physical therapy for two to three months before I could start easing back into pitching. The hardest part to get through was knowing I wasn’t going to be a 100% at first. When I finally got back to Longwood, Jenna (Paige) helped me a lot to get back to 100%, and once I got the hang (of pitching) again and got the mechanics back, now it just feels like I never even had the surgery.
AR: How does it feel to start your senior season on such a high note?
BS: It feels great. I love being in the circle and having the ball. I feel like I’m in charge out there, so I just hope I can keep throwing and I hope my pitches stay effective throughout the season to help us keep getting outs.
AR: What does it mean to you to be in the Big South this year?
BS: It means a lot because my first two years we had great teams and even went to beat Georgia. We were just trying so hard to get into Regionals, and now being in a conference we have that opportunity, so we have our eyes on the Big South Championship.
AR: What are your personal goals for the rest of the season?
BS: Hopefully, I can keep my ERA down like it is and not let it get over 2.00, and of course, stay effective with all my pitches. Offensively, I want to have another good year with the multiple base hits and also RBI are a big deal because when you have people on base, coming through with the RBI is a big deal.
AR: Do you find yourself giving advice to the younger players?
BS: Definitely, it starts off with the warm ups, you have to teach them to do all of that. After they get comfortable with all the little stuff, you’ve got to get them comfortable mentally. That’s probably been the biggest challenge so far this year because we have a lot of freshman starting. Getting them mentally comfortable has been the biggest thing.
AR: Can you explain the team’s special pregame ritual that can be seen at home games?
BS: That’s been here since I’ve been here. It’s normally always a freshman. I had to do it numerous times. It was always my turn. It gets us pumped up before the games. Whenever Coach Riley is done at the plate with the scorecard, she’ll just hold it back and then one of the freshmen will get down in a track starting position and sprint to get the lineup. The slide at the end really gets everybody going.
AR: Do you have any of your own pregame rituals or superstitions?
BS: No, I’m not really like that. I’m just so laid back that I’ve never really had superstitions like that. Even with my pitching warm up, I can be ready in five minutes. I normally just throw in the bullpen with Megan (Baltzell) and then if I’m tight, we’ll stretch and have a pregame talk. Then we just pitch a little bit more and go with the rest of the team. I think Megan and I getting mentally ready together is the biggest thing.
AR: If you could give a piece of advice to a young, aspiring player, what would it be?
BS: You definitely have to have work ethic and heart to be a Division I player, for sure. With us getting in the weight room at 5:30 a.m., it takes a lot with school, too. You definitely have to have the desire and just be mentally tough to get through it.
AR: Do you have any role models?
BS: Briana Wells ’11 was actually a good role model for me. She would pitch every single game and never complain. She would be ready to wake up in the morning and go again. It’s like it never fazed her, so whenever I’m getting tired, I just think back to her and say well she did it, so I can, too. She just always had this drive about her that made me want to work harder because she was working so hard for us. She definitely inspired me.
AR: Why did you pick Longwood?
BS: I really liked Coach Riley. When I came to see the school, I liked the smaller campus because I came from a small town. It’s only about an hour and 20 minutes away from home, so I liked it because it wasn’t too far. I do better learning in small classes, too.
AR: What are your plans following graduation?
BS: I want to get into cardiac rehab. I haven’t fully decided on grad school yet, but I know I’ll be going against people already in grad school (for jobs), I’m thinking about that a lot, but I want to do something with cardiac rehab or maybe physical therapy. If I can find a job where I don’ have to go to grad school, I’ll be looking into that.
