As a multisport athlete in high school, Jillian Van Wagnen grasped the skills needed to play basketball, tennis, golf, cross-country and softball. One skill that applied to each sport was the ability to be aggressive.
Now in her senior season as an Ohio center fielder, Van Wagnen has carried that aggressiveness with her throughout college and has even turned it up a notch during her final season.
“I’m a big fan of multi-sport players,” Van Wagnen said. “When I played basketball, I always had that instinct to play aggressive.”
Much of that aggressiveness comes on the base paths, where Van Wagnen has swiped a team-leading 27 bases this season. Van Wagnen ranks third in the Mid-American Conference and 29th in the country in that category.
After stealing only 22 bases last season, a new running stance as well as a new spot in the lineup has contributed to Van Wagnen’s increased production.
She developed her new stance while working with assistant coach Sharonda McDonald, a former Golden Shoe Award winner at Texas A&M. The award is given annually to the nation’s top base runner.
“It’s all about timing coming off of first base — when you have that exact right timing to where you’re not leaving too early but where you’re not leaving too late,” McDonald said. “I think it’s also best for her because it helps her get the best push off the base.”
McDonald compared Van Wagnen’s new stance to that of a sprinter on the blocks.
Instead of batting in the ninth spot in the lineup as she did in 2011, Van Wagnen moved into the leadoff spot this year when senior shortstop Alexis Joseph suffered an injury.
Joseph fully recovered, but Van Wagnen never relinquished the leadoff role.
“She’s one of those players that’s just going to rise to the occasion,” McDonald said. “I think there was no question about putting her in the one hole, that way she gets more reps, more at bats. I figured it would be an easy transition for her, which it has been.”
Van Wagnen also has had more opportunities to steal bases this season as she has seen her on-base percentage rise from.272 in 2011 to .389 this season, good enough for second on the team.
Senior second baseman Brooke Morgart, who bats second behind Van Wagnen, said it is sometimes difficult at the plate while Van Wagnen is trying to swipe a bag.
“It’s hard sometimes because a lot of times we let Jillian steal, so then I swing over the pitch to distract the catcher,” Morgart said. “So sometimes I find myself hitting in an 0-2 or a 1-2 count, and that sometimes is a little difficult, but it’s been working so far.”
Van Wagnen said her approach every time she steps to the plate is to get on base in any way she can, even if that means laying down a bunt.
“My game plan is always short game,” she said. “I use short game in the beginning of the game and then towards the end because a lot of the corners will start crashing more, so just to keep them honest, I’ll go with a hard slap.”
McDonald said Van Wagnen has the green light in terms of bunting and stealing because of her knowledge of the game. But Van Wagnen’s aggressive nature goes beyond what she does on the base paths.
Contributing to her forcefulness is the amount of eye black Van Wagnen gobs on her cheeks before each game.
She has been using the eye black since high school but insists it is used to display meaningful messages rather than to protect from the sun. Past displays have included Chinese characters that mean aggressiveness or a pound sign.
Junior outfielder Elizabeth Eyrise, who helps Van Wagnen sketch and apply the eye black, said each design conveys a message and also strikes fear in an opponent.
“I just make it look pretty and intense because that’s what eye black is,” Eyrise said. “It’s half intimidation.”
mk277809@ohiou.edu
