North Carolina State University Athletics
Out Of The Park With Jennifer Patrick-Swift
2/4/2019 3:25:00 PM | Softball
RALEIGH - As the NC State softball team prepares to open its season this weekend at the USF Opening Weekend Invitational in Tampa, Fla., GoPack.com caught up with head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift in a recent interview with the media as she gears up for her first season at the helm of the Wolfpack.
The team returns 10 players from last season, including six that spent a majority of the time in the starting lineup. Additionally, the team has seven newcomers (four transfers, three freshmen) that make up this year's squad.
Q: What's your long-term in-season goal for the team? Where do you want your team to be when the end of April and early May approaches?
A: "We want to make the ACC Tournament and then go and have a great weekend. When you make the tournament, anyone has a shot. It's about the team that plays the best ball that weekend. Everyone goes into that weekend 0-0, so if you get there you have a chance to win it."
Q: What's the short-term goal?
A: "We want to play our ball every day. By our style and our ball, that means the 'home run mindset.' We're swinging for it in the box, trying to produce ground ball outs through weak contact on the mound, and playing catch well defensively.
"A lot of coaches and even players are all about wins and losses. At the end of the day, it's absolutely about wins and losses, but in year one when you're trying to turn around a program, it's about changing the culture. It's a completely different team. I'm not taking credit for that, but the girls from where we started day one until now, it's amazing. It literally feels like a different team mentally and physically.
"I think if we can play our style ball, we're going to be in the win column more than the loss column."
Q: You mentioned the 'home run mindset.' How have you been able to teach that and instill it into your team?
A: "Well I think that the mindset of a lot of people is that some people just either have it or don't. Our mindset is that everyone has it. It's just a matter of do they believe they can get out there and do it.
"What we try to do is fundamentally get their swing to where they're going to get the most out of their body and power. Some of our smallest kids are the among the ones hitting it out most consistently when we're going live in BP. It's not about how big or small you are, it's about believing that every time you step in the box that you can do it.
"I think that mindset combined with having the right fundamentals gives the girls a lot of confidence from where they started. They barely hit any out the first few days of practice last semester, and now where they're hitting over a third of the balls out in BP. It's not something that I had to convince them with words, they see that their hard work is paying off."
Q: With it being your first year and almost half of the team being new, what's been the biggest challenge with trying to form a new team and getting everyone to come together?
A: "I think some people would see it as a challenge, but I see it as we all started over, and I'm thankful for that. It was starting over for us as a staff with a new team, it was a new team starting over with a new staff, and it's probably half the kids, maybe less, from last year's team.
"Everything was brand new and sometimes change is scary for people, but I think together as a team and family, collectively we kind of made the decision to learn with each other from it. I think we've invested a lot in each other as people, and I think that's why they're going to be great players."
Q: It's been six years since the program has won an ACC Championship. How cool would it be able to add 2019 to the banners at Dail Stadium?
A: "That's the goal. That's the short-term goal, but at the end of the day we want to play in Oklahoma City. The cool thing about it is that we have the platform to do that. Our kids wake up every day and they truly believe that. It's taken some time, but that's what I'm saying about the culture - it's a 180 from where we were. These kids have worked all their life to play at this level and we want to give them that experience, and part of that is winning championships.
"We want to win, and we want to win big for the school. We want NC State softball to be on the map and that when other teams see us on the schedule, they know that they're going to have a game. We want to add banners, we want to add numbers, we want to win championships, and at the end of the day we want to do it so that the student-athletes can experience that while they're here."
Q: What is the thing that you're most excited for about the season finally gearing up?
A: "I'm excited to see the kids go out and see their hard work pay off. Sometimes as coaches because you're in the heart of it every day and in the trenches, there's moments in some practices when you take a step back and think about how far we've come in such a short time. We're going to have our ups and downs like any other team does, but I really think that the mental side of the game that we're working on is going to allow us to complete our goals.
"Yeah, we want to win every game, but within the game we have offensive, defensive and pitching goals. I'm just excited to get them on the field, and I want them to have fun. I'm hoping that some kids that might have lost a little bit of love for the game have found it again.
"I'm ready to go to war with them. I'll put my name as a coach behind this team all day long, and I'm excited to see them get on the field."
The team returns 10 players from last season, including six that spent a majority of the time in the starting lineup. Additionally, the team has seven newcomers (four transfers, three freshmen) that make up this year's squad.
Q: What's your long-term in-season goal for the team? Where do you want your team to be when the end of April and early May approaches?
A: "We want to make the ACC Tournament and then go and have a great weekend. When you make the tournament, anyone has a shot. It's about the team that plays the best ball that weekend. Everyone goes into that weekend 0-0, so if you get there you have a chance to win it."
Q: What's the short-term goal?
A: "We want to play our ball every day. By our style and our ball, that means the 'home run mindset.' We're swinging for it in the box, trying to produce ground ball outs through weak contact on the mound, and playing catch well defensively.
"A lot of coaches and even players are all about wins and losses. At the end of the day, it's absolutely about wins and losses, but in year one when you're trying to turn around a program, it's about changing the culture. It's a completely different team. I'm not taking credit for that, but the girls from where we started day one until now, it's amazing. It literally feels like a different team mentally and physically.
"I think if we can play our style ball, we're going to be in the win column more than the loss column."
Q: You mentioned the 'home run mindset.' How have you been able to teach that and instill it into your team?
A: "Well I think that the mindset of a lot of people is that some people just either have it or don't. Our mindset is that everyone has it. It's just a matter of do they believe they can get out there and do it.
"What we try to do is fundamentally get their swing to where they're going to get the most out of their body and power. Some of our smallest kids are the among the ones hitting it out most consistently when we're going live in BP. It's not about how big or small you are, it's about believing that every time you step in the box that you can do it.
"I think that mindset combined with having the right fundamentals gives the girls a lot of confidence from where they started. They barely hit any out the first few days of practice last semester, and now where they're hitting over a third of the balls out in BP. It's not something that I had to convince them with words, they see that their hard work is paying off."
Q: With it being your first year and almost half of the team being new, what's been the biggest challenge with trying to form a new team and getting everyone to come together?
A: "I think some people would see it as a challenge, but I see it as we all started over, and I'm thankful for that. It was starting over for us as a staff with a new team, it was a new team starting over with a new staff, and it's probably half the kids, maybe less, from last year's team.
"Everything was brand new and sometimes change is scary for people, but I think together as a team and family, collectively we kind of made the decision to learn with each other from it. I think we've invested a lot in each other as people, and I think that's why they're going to be great players."
Q: It's been six years since the program has won an ACC Championship. How cool would it be able to add 2019 to the banners at Dail Stadium?
A: "That's the goal. That's the short-term goal, but at the end of the day we want to play in Oklahoma City. The cool thing about it is that we have the platform to do that. Our kids wake up every day and they truly believe that. It's taken some time, but that's what I'm saying about the culture - it's a 180 from where we were. These kids have worked all their life to play at this level and we want to give them that experience, and part of that is winning championships.
"We want to win, and we want to win big for the school. We want NC State softball to be on the map and that when other teams see us on the schedule, they know that they're going to have a game. We want to add banners, we want to add numbers, we want to win championships, and at the end of the day we want to do it so that the student-athletes can experience that while they're here."
Q: What is the thing that you're most excited for about the season finally gearing up?
A: "I'm excited to see the kids go out and see their hard work pay off. Sometimes as coaches because you're in the heart of it every day and in the trenches, there's moments in some practices when you take a step back and think about how far we've come in such a short time. We're going to have our ups and downs like any other team does, but I really think that the mental side of the game that we're working on is going to allow us to complete our goals.
"Yeah, we want to win every game, but within the game we have offensive, defensive and pitching goals. I'm just excited to get them on the field, and I want them to have fun. I'm hoping that some kids that might have lost a little bit of love for the game have found it again.
"I'm ready to go to war with them. I'll put my name as a coach behind this team all day long, and I'm excited to see them get on the field."
#BehindThe20 with former Pack Stars Abbie Sims and Renada Davis
Wednesday, April 24
Softball: Players Presser (2/15)
Thursday, February 15
Softball: Coach Leftwich Presser (2/15)
Thursday, February 15
EmpowHER with Aisha Weixlmann #Shorts #NCState #GoPack
Monday, October 16