Emiley Kennedy's Growth Key To Lake Creek's Special Season

MONTGOMERY, TX — When Lake Creek pitcher Emiley Kennedy stood in the circle as a sophomore during the Lions softball program’s inaugural season, she felt the weight of her entire team on her shoulders.

Now as a senior, it’s just another day at the ballpark, and days at the ballpark have been good at third-ranked Lake Creek High School the past two seasons.

The hurler, one of just three seniors for the Lions, is a nightmare for opposing hitters. Kennedy hasn’t allowed an earned run in 89 2/3 innings this season, and Lake Creek hasn’t lost a game heading into a one-game Class 5A Region III quarterfinal against Magnolia West at 6 p.m. Friday at Magnolia High School.

Kennedy is part of a dominant pitching triumvirate for Lake Creek that includes sophomore Ava Brown and junior Brenna Kelly. They have combined for a 0.39 ERA in 193 innings and are a big reason the Lions have outscored their opponents 360-16 on the way to an undefeated District 20-5A championship, perfect 32-0 regular season and sweeps of Magnolia and Austin's Anderson High School in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

“You don’t see that very often,” Lake Creek head coach Michelle Rochinski said. “She’s been in the circle from day one, and we’ve had other pitchers come in and compete with her. That’s good for all of them. They feed off each other, and Emiley has grown with that. She doesn’t have to put it all on her back anymore.”

After her freshman season at The Woodlands High School, Kennedy moved to Lake Creek for its inaugural 2018-'19 school year. Kennedy, who had already committed to play at Texas A&M University, immediately became an essential building block for the program, which saw success from the start under Rochinski, the former Montgomery head softball coach.

Kennedy pitched 133 2/3 innings with a 1.62 ERA her sophomore season, helping the Lions reach the playoffs in their first year as a program. Lake Creek finished second in 20-5A but was swept by A&M Consolidated in the first round of the playoffs.

The Lions and Kennedy took a large leap forward in year two, going 15-1 before the UIL canceled the 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kennedy’s continued development as a pitcher showed with a 0.82 ERA and 54 strikeouts in 34 innings pitched.

Learning From An All-American

Kennedy throws five pitches: a fastball, change-up, rise ball, drop ball and curveball. She can overpower most hitters with her velocity (her coaches said she has touched 71 mph and routinely throws in the upper 60s). She likes to use her curveball for easy strikes against opponents hunting fastballs early in the count. When batters are timing her fastball, she can throw them off with her change-up, but Kennedy takes the most pride in her ability to put the ball where she needs it.

It’s helped her hold opponents to a minuscule .070 batting average this year while giving up just 19 walks and striking out 189.

“I know that no matter what I throw, I’m going to throw through the zone and make them hit it. I hit my spots,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy has always had the talent and the pitch arsenal to be an elite player. But in three years as her coach, Rochinski has seen her improve the most on the mental side of pitching, especially in her senior season. Both coach and player give plenty of credit for that growth to assistant coach Megan Loftin.

At the beginning of the 2020-'21 school year, Rochinski added Loftin to her staff as an assistant with an emphasis on pitching.

Most avid softball and Texas A&M fans know her as Megan Gibson, the three-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-American who played with the Aggies from 2005-'08, helping them to the Women’s College World Series in 2007 and the WCWS Final in 2008. Loftin then was an assistant coach in the college ranks for 11 years with stops at A&M, the University of Texas at San Antonio, Pennsylvania State University and the University of Houston.

Loftin said that the pitching staff has done all the “heavy lifting” this year as far as getting the results on the field, but Kennedy said she’s more able to focus this season when there are runners on base, and she needs to get out of a jam.

Loftin said she brought some workouts from her college coaching days that put her pitchers in pressure situations during practice and help them buckle down in game situations.

“Emiley has done a good job of making that her focus this year,” Loftin said. “Are [the workouts] hard? Absolutely. Are there days that they’re easier? Absolutely. I think it’s them growing in the sense of on the days that it’s really hard, they still push through and better themselves instead of giving up or getting so frustrated they want to give up.”

The results have been astounding as Kennedy has stranded 49 runners this season while allowing just two unearned runs.

“It helps her going off to college next year,” Loftin said. “So I am preparing them for the playoffs. I am preparing them for high school, but I’m also helping prepare them for college, too.”

An Unlimited Threat

As specialization continues to grow in youth athletics and even inside specific sports, Kennedy doesn’t want to be put in a box as a pitcher.

She also plays first base when Brown or Kelly are pitching and carries a big bat no matter where she’s playing in the field. She is second on the team with 13 home runs and she has a 1.328 on-base plus slugging, which ranks fourth in a heavy-hitting lineup.

“I have not been a hitter my whole life, and when I got into high school I told myself, ‘I need to hit, so I can hit in college,’” Kennedy said. “I’ve progressively gotten better, and this year I’m starting to really see the ball. It’s clicking now.”

Kennedy wants to continue to play both ways at A&M, and she said Aggies head coach Jo Evans told her that she’s an “unlimited threat.” She may not have a better example for this ambition than Loftin, who was named an All-American as both a hitter and pitcher while at A&M.

Throughout the year, the pair has talked about what it takes to be great at both pitching and hitting, especially at the collegiate level. The biggest hurdle is having a clear head and not letting one affect her performance with the other and compartmentalizing her different roles.

A&M has a bit of a history of stellar two-way players. In addition to Loftin, Samantha Show and Makinzy Herzog have shined in that role for the Aggies in recent years.

“I think it’s really neat that we get to work together, and I can help prepare her for a system I’m familiar with at A&M,” Loftin said. “But also, it’s great to see her success and prepare her for the postseason here, too.”

Unfinished Business

That’s also where Kennedy’s head is at right now in the thick of a postseason run.

With all the success and wins this season, the Lions are in unfamiliar territory. Before this season, Lake Creek had never been beyond the first round until a couple weeks ago, thanks largely to the fact the 2020 season was cut short.

The Lions also have done it with a young team made up of mostly sophomores and juniors. Kennedy, Jenny Robison and Bre Hagerty are Lake Creek’s lone seniors but their leadership has been vital, according to Rochinski.

“The younger girls look up to her,” Rochinski said. “I think she’s taken this season and ran with it because of what happened last year and knowing it’s her senior year. With all three of our seniors, it’s their year. They want to do something special with it.”

Lake Creek has its sights set on a state championship. While nothing is guaranteed in the postseason — especially in a Region III bracket that includes three other top 10 teams in No. 2 Barbers Hill, No. 7 Santa Fe and No. 10 Crosby — the Lions certainly have the combination of pitching, hitting and fielding to accomplish that goal.

Kennedy admits that no one saw an undefeated regular season coming. The winning streak has raised high expectations surrounding the program even higher, but it’s also made the season special in its own right.

“I’ve been over the moon,” Kennedy said. “It’s been the best season I could ask for my senior year. I know that even if the season doesn’t go the way we want, I’m still going to be really proud of this season and how we played.”