Source: Hometown Life

Author: Dan O'Meara

Abby Krzywiecki still has the first home-run ball she hit as a keepsake and piece of personal sports memorabilia in her bedroom.

If she had saved every one she has ever hit, they just might fill the room.

Krzywiecki has belted a lot of dingers in 10 years of playing softball, including 36 during a four-year varsity career at Mercy High School.

The Division 1 all-stater and perennial all-Observer player also pitches and plays first base, but she’s best known for his prowess at the plate, particularly her power.

“When I was 12, I did my first lesson with Donny Dreher,” she said, referring to her summer travel team coach. “I was really weak and wouldn’t swing as hard, but he got me to swing really hard.

“That was the only lesson I would do. I had to swing as hard as I could, or I had to do push-ups. I never wanted to do that punishment, so I just swung as hard as I could.

“Throughout my middle school years, I got super strong and realized, ‘Wow, it’s crazy how far it will go if you swing as hard as you can.’

“Through my coach and my parents telling me, ‘Look, if you work as hard as you can, it’s going to work out best for you,’ which it obviously did.”

In addition to the many postseason honors she has received, Krzywiecki is a finalist for the Detroit Athletic Club’s High School Female Athlete of the Year Award. The winner will be announced Monday.

Her softball skills also netted a full-ride scholarship to the University of South Alabama, a national power that is ranked 45th among the 295 teams in the NCAA Division I RPI.

South Alabama was the first school to approach Krzywiecki about playing college ball – when she was in the eighth grade.

That was at a tournament in Utah when Krzywiecki was playing for a 16U team against 18U competition.

“It was like, ‘We’re just going to take you, because you’re pretty good,’” Krzywiecki said. “They invited me down for a visit. I just loved it.”

Though she has had many other offers since then, she was sold on USA and made an early commitment to the Jaguars.

“It was the college I compared everything to,” Krzywiecki said. “If I went to one college, it was, ‘Oh, this is good, but is it as good as South Alabama?’

“They’re very good at what they do. They produce very good people. They’re not just focused on the softball aspect of it. They want to create your people skills and make sure you grow as a person.

“Life doesn’t carry on forever with softball. Softball ends at some point, and you have to learn how to deal with people.”

‘Crazy experience’

But, wasn’t that a bit overwhelming, to be 14 years old and have college coaches asking you to visit their campus?

“It was a crazy experience to know the recruiting process had started so young for me,” Krzywiecki said. “A lot of people back then were committing junior or senior year.

“When they showed interest in me, my dad told me, ‘Let’s just try it; see if you like it there.’ I went in with no expectations. It was a great experience, because that was the first college I chose.”

Motion pictures

Krzywiecki, who has a 3.5 GPA, scored 25 on the ACT and is a member of the National Honor Society, plans to study business and combine that with her love for movies.

“My dream, dream job is to work in the movie industry,” she said. “I think it would be super cool to work behind the scenes and do the business work of movies.

“I’m a movie addict. I like all kinds of movies. My favorites are the Godfather, Great Gatsby, Revenant, Spotlight, the Harry Potter series (to name a few). I really don’t hate any movies; I just have favorites.”

Father knows best

Krzywiecki’s dad, Keith, also played a major role in her becoming an outstanding softball player.

The batting cage he built in the basement of their home gave Abby a place to take extra swings any time she wanted.

“My dad is the biggest influence in my life for this sport, because he knew I had potential,” she said. “He was always pushing me. Even though I thought he was being mean to me at times, I knew he was doing it for the best, for me.

“He’d be telling me to hit when I didn’t want to do it. Now, I can’t be more thankful. He’s the No. 1 reason I am where I am today because of his support.”

‘Hey, let’s play two!’

Softball has become a passion for Krzywiecki, who has been to half the states in the union through her travels with the Finesse summer program. It’s something she has been doing since she was 10.

“Every one of our tournaments last year was out of state,” she said, citing trips to Louisville, Boulder, Chicago, Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, etc. “I think I was home for two weeks total.

“I’d be home for a day and get on another plane to go somewhere else. But it’s my favorite thing to do; I had a blast. It was one of my favorite summers.”

While other players might get burned out on playing softball, Krzywiecki can’t relate to that.

“Some say, ‘Oh, my gosh, I want to go back to school; I’m so bored,’” she said. “I’m never bored in the summer. I’m like, ‘Let’s keep going; let’s keep traveling.’

“It’s so cool to see different parks, different teams, different matchups. ‘I’ll be playing you in a few years in college.’ It’s so neat. It’s a very rewarding experience.”

Help with pitching

Krzywiecki, who has been a fixture in the Mercy lineup and the No. 3 batter throughout her high school career, was the team’s primary pitcher her first two years.

Senior Andrea Elmore emerged at that position last season and replaced Krzywiecki as the team’s ace. Krzywiecki focuses on playing first base and is Elmore’s biggest fan.

“She is one the best pitchers in high school, and she’s absolutely killing it this season,” Krzywiecki said, acknowledging Elmore has moved ahead of her in that capacity.

“I know she can throw her pitches in her spots and strike people out, and it’s helped me to be on my game, to be a good first baseman. If she can’t strike someone out, I have to have her back.

“Her success has helped the team grow. It’s just cool to see her transformation from sophomore to senior year, and I’m just so happy to play defense for her.”

By the numbers

In her first three seasons at Mercy, Krzywiecki had 150 hits, 144 RBIs, 28 home runs and a .510 average. She also had a 39-4 pitching record.

Prior to a doubleheader Friday with Livonia Ladywood, Krzywiecki was hitting .464 with a team-best eight home runs and 38 RBIs.

In 65 plate appearances, she had just four strikeouts, which is not at all bad for a power hitter. In the circle, she was 4-1 with a 1.73 ERA and a near 8-to-1 ratio of strikeouts to walks.

But she’s not focused on personal goals or trying to reach certain statistical numbers.

“I don’t think too much about that kind of stuff,” Krzywiecki said. “I think it might stress me out. I just want to have fun.

“After this, I’ll have travel season and college, which turns into kind of a job. I just want to do as well as I can and contribute to my team as much as I can.

“I want to get on base, score runs and drive people in, but I also want to have fun and not put too much stress on myself.”

Senior leadership

Krzywiecki, Elmore and third baseman Cari Padula are the only seniors on the Mercy team, which is ranked No. 2 in the state and was 15-1 overall as of Tuesday.

“I think this team has exceeded my expectations,” Krzywiecki said, adding the Marlins have great chemistry and have adjusted well to losing some good players last year. “The players who came in have meshed well with us.

“All of us older girls have an influence on how they see the game, so we’re keeping it positive and giving them a lot of confidence. We have a big role in how they grow as softball players, too.”

The ups and downs

The Marlins experienced high and low points last week. The high was winning a dobubleheader from defending Catholic League and state champion Warren Regina.

“It was cool to get our confidence back, because they beat us last year and they have a strong team this year,” Krzywiecki said. “We just tried to do the small things, which turned into a big win, which was a confidence builder.”

The low was the team’s first loss the next day, 2-1 to Richmond in nine innings at the Michigan Stars tournament.

“They executed the international tiebreaker better than we did,” Krzywiecki said. “Hey, that’s all right. We’ll practice that and get ’em next time. It’s not like it was so devastating. ‘OK, we can do this; we just have to work harder.’”

Looking to finish

The Marlins, who were state semifinalists last year, want to make a return trip to East Lansing in June and, hopefully, win it all. But there’s a lot of softball to be played between now and then.

“I’m excited to see what this team can do, because I think we can get pretty far,” Krzywiecki said.

“My favorite saying is, ‘I can’t wait to get going, but I’m not quite ready to leave.’ I’m ready to get to college; I’m ready to experience that.

“But this is what’s holding me back. I just love my close-knit group of friends on this team. I think we have great talent and potential.

“I’m excited to see what we become as a team. I think this team is going to be awesome as a whole and not as individuals.”