They go by “Butterfly” and “Caterpillar.”
Holy Cross’ softball team likely might not have a 6-3 record after Tuesday’s 17-3 three-inning win over Calvary Christian, and the Indians wouldn’t have won their second consecutive Ninth Region All “A” title (a 5-4, nine-inning triumph over Beechwood) – and a trip to the state small-school tournament beginning April 26 in Owensboro – if not for senior pitcher Evie “Butterfly” Thomas and freshman catcher Zoey “Caterpillar” Baker.
To Thomas, winning last year’s All “A” region was a bigger deal because Holy Cross hadn’t done it in a while.
“But going and doing it again was awesome as well because I feel like a lot of people thought Holy Cross wasn’t going to go very far or make it,” Thomas said. “And it was a big deal because we won it in extra innings too.”
The insect nicknames were Thomas’s idea.
“I call Zoey my caterpillar because we have an ongoing joke that I’m the butterfly,” Thomas said. “When I finally leave senior year, she’ll be a caterpillar and she’ll turn it to a butterfly.”
Baker giggled when asked about her softball sobriquet.
“(Thomas) has been a good leader of the team,” Baker said.
In the circle and at the plate, however, Thomas and Baker are more like Asian giant hornets.
Thomas leads the team with a .583 batting to go with 65 strikeouts, 28 walks and a 2.20 earned run average in 44 innings. Baker carries a .522 average.
Holy Cross coach Courtney Turner said Thomas and Baker have a bond – something pitchers and catchers need.
“It’s kind of a good story,” Turner said. “Evie started playing for the school in eighth grade, and Zoe started playing when (she) was in seventh grade, so we’ve always had younger girls on our team.”
Thomas said Baker is a calming presence.
“I just get nervous with pitching because I feel like if I don’t pitch strikes, then I’ll put people on and then we lose the game,” Thomas said.
Holy Cross’ season has not been easy; the Indians started with two losses, 9-2 at Pendleton County and 10-0 in five innings at Campbell County.
“We had a lot of mistakes in the field that we don’t normally make, and we were really struggling to hit,” Turner said. So we kind of focused on hitting in practice and then kind of cleaning up our fielding.”
The Indians started their turnaround with an 11-0 shutout of Ludlow. Freshman shortstop Maddie Urlage was 3-for-4 with a double and three runs batted in, and Thomas struck out seven on 57 pitches.
The right-handed Thomas said her screwball – which moves away from a left-handed hitter – is her go-to pitch; she said it replaced her curveball.
“(The curve’s) it’s not cutting, or as much as it used to be,” Thomas said.
Holy Cross defeated Bellevue, 13-3, in the All “A” semifinals at Beechwood. Senior Zakyah Ryan drove in three with a double and home run, and Thomas struck out 12.
Senior Jordyn Reiselman’s walk-off single against Beechwood scored Kayla Fledderman. Thomas struck out 11 and was 3-for-4 with a triple and an RBI.
After Newport Central Catholic overwhelmed the Indians, 23-3 in three innings, Holy Cross won its next three over Boone County, Walton-Verona and Calvary Christian.
Unlike the postseason single-elimination tournament, Holy Cross is in a pool with the Second, Seventh and Eighth regions. The top two teams advance to the single elimination round April 27.
Thomas believes the All “A” games are a springboard to the rest of the season.
“It took us a couple games, but we’re definitely hitting a lot better,” she said. “… I feel like we have a lot of pressure on us because people are talking about how we have a better team. We’re gonna do big things this year, and we feel like we have to succeed and do that.”