Sports
Lady Hatters' Pitcher Aims to Lead Team to State Title
If Hatboro-Horsham wants to win the PIAA state championship, they will need strong pitching from junior Maggie Shaffer.
Most pitchers have three or four pitches that they are comfortable using. A few of the better pitchers have five.
But Hatboro-Horsham's junior pitcher Maggie Shaffer has seven pitches in her repertoire, all of which she'll use throughout the course of a game.
"I throw a fastball, a changeup, a drop ball, a drop curve, a screwball, a curveball, and a rise ball," said Shaffer, who credits her development as a pitcher to her pitching coach, Roy Jenderko.
Find out what's happening in Hatboro-Horshamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
"When I'm pitching, I just try to stay nice and calm," Shaffer said. "I don't let anything get to me. I just try and focus on every single pitch."
Shaffer lists her main inspiration on the pitching circle as Jennie Finch, a former gold medal winning pitcher for the United States Olympic team. She says that her proudest athletic accomplishment came when she helped her 18-and-under travel team win the Eastern Nationals championship in the Amateur Softball Assocation of America League.
Find out what's happening in Hatboro-Horshamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Shaffer has been playing softball virtually her whole life - since she was 5 years old - and has been a pitcher since she was 9. She can also play second base when she's not on the pitching circle.
"My favorite aspect of pitching is being involved in every single play and having some sort of control over the game," Shaffer said.
Hatboro-Horsham's head coach, Joe DiFilippo, expressed his confidence in Shaffer as a pitcher.
"When Maggie is pitching, we know that we are always in the game," DiFilippo said. "She shows great confidence on the field and nothing rattles her. She consistently hits her spots no matter what pitch is called."
When she's not playing or practicing her pitching, Shaffer enjoys being a typical teenager and that means hanging out with her friends and family. Shaffer used to play soccer, basketball, and field hockey, but focuses primarily on softball now. She says she would like to play either Division II or Division III softball in college.
Last year, she helped lead the Hatboro-Horsham Lady Hatters to the PIAA Class AAAA semifinals. This season, Shaffer, who went 17-2 as a starting pitcher, wants to lead her squad to the highest finish possible - the state championship.
The Lady Hatters' quest for the state championship continues Wednesday at 4 p.m.
