Get to know MHCC’s winning softball team

The returning NWAC softball Champs are back in full swing (so far as fall preseason practice and practice games), being led by veteran head coach Brittany Hendrickson. They are hoping for a repeat of a near-perfect season and championship they earned last spring.

The departure of Most Valuable Player Haley Davis will truly be felt but the show must go on, and I have no doubt that another title for the Saints is on the horizon.

The team is in good hands with their coaching staff. Hendrickson is no stranger to winning softball. Coaching at Mt. Hood for her seventh year, the former standout player for Portland State University and three-time all-league offensive MVP has the formula to put out a winning program.

Returning players that were pivotal to last year’s success include team captain and heavy hitter at second base, Matlyn Leetch, boasting a .543 batting average and school record single-season 101 hits. “Hey Hey” was named to the Northwest Athletic Conference’s first team for the South Region.

Leetch hails out of Medford, Oregon, and while undecided on a career path is currently studying Pre-Med with an impressive 3.7 GPA.

Steering the Saints from the pitching rubber are the dynamic duo of Alexia Geary and Marley Johnson. Geary, a starting pitcher, has a fastball clocked at 58 mph with an impressive 147 strikeouts last season. When she’s not playing pitcher, she plays first base.

Geary is a hometown girl, hailing from Gresham, and was named to the Mount Hood Conference first team in both 2017 and 2018, pitching for Sam Barlow High School. She’s currently studying dental hygiene and is on her way to receiving her certifications in that field.

“Mayday” Marley, as we all joked so far as a nickname, is the Saints’ primary relief pitcher, sharing time with Geary. When not playing pitcher, she’s what Hendrickson calls a utility player – a player that can play at a high level at more than one position.

Johnson is a star pitcher in her own right. Growing up in Portland, she was named to all-conference PIL (Portland Interscholastic League) teams during her freshman and junior years. She is currently taking general studies, as yet undecided as far as a major for her degree.

Looking forward to putting fall practice on the field for next spring’s season, Hendrickson said, “‘We’re excited; we will be the hardest working team in the NWAC.” She described her winning formula for success in softball as “building relationships that go beyond the field so [players] have support in life and not just in softball,” including planning many team-building events.

The coach makes it a point to check in on her players in the off-season to make sure they’re doing okay, and offers assistance in any way she can. That includes help as far as furthering their futures as an athlete and playing at a higher level, whether it’s at another school or even  professionally.

“I connect them with four-year universities; I have connections with other coaches from other institutions,” she said. “I’ll call other coaches to come and have a look at one of my players or sometimes I’ll even take them myself to another school’s practice field to tryouts and whatnot.”

In short, Hendrickson said she’s “ecstatic” about Mt. Hood’s squad and its chance to stay on top of the NWAC. It’s clear the returning champs are looking to wreak havoc on the opposing teams once again.

Here’s to seeing you at the games, come spring!