The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Who is that masked woman? Longhorns catcher Megan Willis
06.03.2005 | Softball
Quick quiz on the Texas softball team ...
How many Texas players are responsible for the pitching staff's incredible 0.55 earned run average, the lowest ERA in the nation?
How many Texas players have played a big role in UT's opponents being held to a mere .111 batting average?
If you guessed the number "five", as in UT's quintet of 2005 pitchers (Amy Bradford, Meagan Denny, Christina Gwyn, Cat Osterman and Lizi Sowers), wrong answer. Please try again.
The correct answer is seven. Add two more important people to that list: sophomore catchers Megan Willis and Jacqueline Williams.
Since arriving at the Forty Acres, Willis has made an immediate impact. The All-Big 12 Conference standout quickly established herself as one of the premier catchers in the conference; and now, with UT's run toward the NCAA National Championship, Willis is showing the softball world just how valuable she is in the Longhorn lineup.
As Texas prepares to face No. 1 seeded Michigan in the second game of the 2005 Women's College World Series on June 3, Willis is the Longhorns' commander with the cannon arm on the diamond.
The second-year starter from Chandler, Arizona is called the "Texas field general" by UT head coach Connie Clark. Deservedly so.
Willis, the former State of Arizona Gatorade Softball Player of the Year as a senior at Corona del Sol High School in Chandler, has appeared in 53 games to date this season, making 44 starts (39 as catcher, four as the designated player, and one as starting first baseman). Willis has a splendid fielding average of .997, handling 660 total chances while committing just two errors. She also has picked off eight runners on the year while throwing out 13 runners attempting to steal.
Most recently, Willis' defensive prowess shone brightly against Bethune-Cookman in the May 28th Super Regional contest - a 6-1 Texazs win which vaulted the Horns into the Women's College World Series. Willis snuffed out potential Bethune-Cookman rallies in the early innings when she threw out a base-runner attempting to steal second and picked off two other runners at first base - including two in the same inning.
Willis' influence also extends to the Longhorns' offense. Her overall batting average of .244 belies the fact that she has emerged as one of UT's true offensive leaders in the NCAA Tournament. Willis' .571 batting average led all players at the NCAA Austin Regional (4-7) as she also drove in the game-winning run against Massachusetts and went 3-for-3 in the second game against Mississippi State while calling Osterman's second no-hitter in as many days. In the two-game Super Regional against Bethune-Cookman, Willis added one hit, drew a walk and was hit by a pitch and scored a run.
With an upbeat personality and fun-loving nature, the gregarious 5-8 sophomore masks her smoldering competitive attitude. You don't see that competitive nature when Megan's discussing her interests (music, swimming, journal writing, watching The Real World), talking about her favorite celebrities ("Hollaback Girl" musician and actress Gwen Stefani and actress Cameron Diaz) or telling you about her dream career (professional makeup artist).
Quick to light up the room with her smile and very out-going personality, Willis quickly gets down to business once she puts on the catching gear and slaps her mask on to go out behind the plate for yet another inning of work.
And work it is.
She has been behind the plate for nearly every pitch that USA Softball Player of the Year Osterman throws, with Osterman's balls dipping and diving. Then, she is asked to quickly switch gears and catch the hard-throwing freshman standout Denny. Two different pitching styles which call for quick adjustments on Willis' end.
"Cat and I worked really hard all fall to get comfortable with each other," Willis noted. "Before she went to pitch for the Olympic Team, she had had a great chemistry with (former UT catcher) Marlo Hanks, and we had to start all over with me behind the plate. When I first started catching Cat, I'd never caught anyone whose pitches moved so much - her drop ball drops down about half a foot."
Willis has caught almost every game Osterman has started this season, including six no-hitters and a perfect game.
A few weeks ago, Willis and Denny started to work together at battery mates in practice. Denny, who had relied on Jacqueline Williams as her catcher for most of the season, now turned to Willis behind the plate.
"Coach (Clark) really wanted to go with consistency as we started to play in the NCAA Tournament, and Meagan and I worked a lot in May to establish good communication," Willis noted.
To all this, let's add one important fact: since the start of the Big 12 season, Willis has also taken over the task of calling each and every pitch for each and every Texas hurler. Another huge responsibility added to Willis' shoulders. Prior to that, the Texas coaching staff would make all the pitching decisions from the dugout.
"Megan has matured so much behind the plate this year. We felt she was ready to do that (call the pitches) and that she could be a strength for us," Clark said. "We need Cat and Megan and Meagan (Denny) on the same page. It's been a great benefit to us."
When asked about catching the top two pitchers and making all the decisions on calling the game, Willis breaks into a big smile and discusses her love for being behind the plate.
"I love the challenge. I am very, very competitive," she noted. "Ever since I started calling the games, I've been so much more involved overall. My batting average has gone up, and my defense has improved. I feel like I'm much sharper in my overall game."
"This is why I came here to Texas - to be in the thick of pressure. This is why Texas recruited me. I just love the pressure of calling the game, of handling the pitchers, of having all this responsibility. I thrive in that environment," Willis concluded.
And, there could be no more words of support and admiration than those from Osterman, who has played with her share of standout catchers while part of the USA Olympic Team and as a member of the USA National Team program.
"My catcher is a big deal for me. To have great confidence in a catcher is really really important for a pitcher," Osterman stated. "Megan can come out and really help me settle down or give some advice. She'll talk to me constantly, and then just turn around with a big smile on her face and get back behind the plate. She really loves this game and that effects the way we all play out there."
"You've got to have confidence in yourself and really have great communication with your pitchers," Willis said. "Cat and I talk constantly during the game. Sometimes she'll say to me, 'Hey Megan, I think this is my best pitch today', and we'll go with it. Sometimes, I might say to her, 'Cat, I think your best pitch right now is such-and-such, and we need to work with that right now'. So, it's a give-and-take. She respects me enough to say, 'OK, Megan, we'll go with what you say'. As a catcher, you need to make sure your pitchers and your coaches totally trust you. I work hard on that every day."
And that trust issue came through loud and clear in UT's 3-0 win over Alabama Thursday (June 2) in the opening game of the Women's College World Series. Osterman turned in a one-hit, 17-strikeout performance (tying the WCWS record for most strikeouts in a seven-inning game).
In the post-game press conference, the Olympic gold medalist and the college world's best player quickly turned the attention away from her own performance; instead, she credited Willis for her standout performance behind the plate.
"Megan and I connected all game long. We were on the same page with all but one pitch tonight," Osterman noted. "You cannot ask for a better ball game to be called than the one that Megan Willis called for us tonight."
Getting the highest compliments from a world-class pitcher. Handling the pressure calling each and every pitch of every game for head coach Clark, herself a former All-America pitcher and National Player of the Year at Cal State-Fullerton.
It takes a special type of talent and temperament to get these compliments and responsibilities - and Megan Willis is the one Longhorn who showcases these skills and this personality.
