Jessica Leinenbach might see the field a little differently than most who play her position.
And it has only made her a better player.
Leinenbach is a senior at MaST Charter High School, and she has spent most of her high school career playing the hot corner of third base.
It’s a tough position, the ball comes fast, but she’s prepared. And because she has experience playing another high-pressure position, she’s better off.
“I made the team as a freshman, but I didn’t play too much, I would just get in here and there,” said Leinenbach, who lives in Pine Valley. “I started at third base the past three years. But when I was younger, I was a catcher. I played that and sometimes I would play third, but mostly I was a catcher
“I guess when I was catching when I was younger, I must have stopped catching around 14, but I definitely see the field differently than most (third basemen). I saw where things were, where they were going. I can tell where the ball is going to be hit. I think if it’s an outside pitch, I tell right side to be on their toes. I think after I shifted to third, I feel like it helped me a lot. With knowing who is coming up and being able to call to the outfield where the play is going. You learn a lot from playing catcher and I just brought that with me.”
And because of that, Leinenbach isn’t just a good player, she’s a heady player who can not only do the thinking for herself, she’s good at helping teammates.
That actually works out perfectly because that’s another part of Leinenbach’s game that she enjoys doing.
“Being a senior plays a big role in a lot of the things I do for the team,” Leinenbach said. “I’m not a captain, we have captains and they’re both playing college softball. I look to them for a lot of leadership, but my role, I felt like it was almost the same as them.
“I feel a lot of players came to me for advice. Little things and I always try to help anyone out and give the best advice that I can. It gave me a confidence boost because people see the hard work that I tried to show on the field and they come to me to ask me what I’m doing. It makes me feel like I’m doing something right.”
She did a lot right. And she was a huge reason for the success of the MaST softball team that went 14-5 this year.
Not only did the Panthers beat the teams they were slated to win, they played their best when they went against top-notch competition, including falling by one run to Villa Joseph Marie in the District One championship game.
The Panthers also held their own against their biggest rivals.
“The best part was this year probably we had our goal to play good against Bristol because they’re one of the best teams in our league every year, they’re really good,” Leinenbach said. “We played them twice and we came really close the last time we played them, it was 3-2. I was really proud of that. We hit the ball a little, we did well in the field and that gave us a boost of confidence. It was always our bad game of the year. This year we did pretty good against them and they were really good this year, too.”
But so were the Panthers.
In fact, this might have been the best season they had during Leinenbach’s high school career..
“I think we had a really good year my sophomore year, but this year is our best year and as a team, I think, because we’re all playing together,” Leinenbach said. “We have a lot of love for each other. We’re close in school and that helped us on the field. I think as seniors, we have a lot of us, there’s nine, we all knew we wanted to be super close and make the incoming freshmen feel super welcome and we did that. And I think that we definitely worked on communication at the beginning of the year. Last year we weren’t the best at that. Now we’re really good at communicating.”
Leinenbach’s softball career is over, but she is going to remain extremely busy.
She’s bound for Disney on a senior trip, and not long after that, she’s bound for Happy Valley.
“I’m going to Penn State,” she said. “I’m going in undecided, but I want to explore marketing business and marketing advertising. I think I’m a very big people person, I get that from my dad. He likes to talk. I can see myself doing well in that kind of career. I’m a lot like him.”
She gets more than just her friendly personality from her parents.
“I would love to say thanks to my parents and my family for helping me get to where I am and my coaches for molding me into the player I am,” Leinenbach said. “And my teammates. All of my coaches and my teammates. They have all given me the best seasons I could possibly have.
“My dad coached me. He wasn’t my T-ball coach, but playing rec, he was my coach. He played a big part in the player I am. Having your dad as a coach can be hard at times, your parent is always harder on you, and I think that it made me better in a way. I always knew they were there.”
And she’ll lean on them long after she’s a college girl.
She’s nervous, but very excited about her next step.
“I’m a little excited, a little nervous,” said Leinenbach, who starts Penn State June 29. “None of my friends are going up for the summer, so I’ll have to make new friends. But I’ve only heard good things about it. It’s a great way to get a head start and experience what college classes are like. I’m really excited.”
