Special bond
Oak Park's Julia Rice knows the pitcher-catcher relationship is vital to softball success
By Stephen Dorman sdorman@theacorn.com

BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers FRIENDS AND TEAMMATES- Rose Zeolla, left, and Julia Rice have the Eagle softball team poised for a postseason run.

There are few things on the softball field as important as the relationship between pitcher and catcher.

Take Oak Park High's Julia Rice for example.

Rice is one of the finest pitchers in the Tri-Valley League, if not the entire county. The 16-year-old sophomore, who hopes to play for Oregon State after her high school career is complete, leads the league in wins (11), ERA (.395), shutouts (eight) and strikeouts (190).

In each of her 12 starts this season, Rice has struck out at least 10 batters, including a schoolrecord 19 strikeouts on Tuesday at home against Nordhoff.

Armed with six go-to pitches, including a 65mileperhour rising fastball, Rice has led Oak Park to a 13-4 overall record and a 6-1 mark in the TVL. The Eagles are one game behind first-place Oaks Christian in the league standings.

The secret to her success on the mound, said Rice before Monday's practice, is having a catcher she can trust.

BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers JOB WELL DONE- Oak Park sophomore pitcher Julia Rice, left, offers congratulations to sophomore catcher Rose Zeolla following Tuesday's victory over Nordhoff. Rice allowed one hit and struck out 19.

"You have to be on the same page with the catcher. You have to have a good relationship," Rice said. "If she calls a pitch, you have to know that it's the right pitch. It's a comm u n i c a t i o n thing, a special bond you have to have with the catcher."

During her freshman season, the pitchercatcher relationship was an easy one for Rice.

A year ago her older sister, Kayla, was starting behind the plate for the Eagles. With Kayla calling the pitches, Julia went 8-4 with a .712 ERA and had 150 strikeouts in 78.2 innings.

When Kayla graduated and moved on to attend Cal State Fullerton, Julia began working with a new catcher at OPHS, fellow sophomore Rose Zeolla.

"It was an adjustment," Rice said. "It was kind of weird, only because my sister was catching before. But I'm really, really good friends with Rose Zeolla, and we've been able to be on the same page a lot. We've been talking a lot.

"It's been great. Our team's been great. We're at a really good point right now in our season, and hopefully we're just going to build on that."

Zeolla said she began working with Rice and her pitching coaches during the offseason. The two players discussed pitching philosophies before the year began, and the lines of communication have been wide open ever since.

"We always call timeouts and talk to each other about what kind of pitches we're going to throw," Zeolla said. "I call them, and she can shake me off whenever she wants."

These days, Rice and Zeolla often talk about pitch location.

Although she throws hard- a 65-mile-per-hour fastball from a softball mound equates to a mid90s pitch in baseball- Rice has become extremely effective at placing her pitches, which has frustrated many batters.

"She's one of those pitchers who, when you ask her to put it somewhere, she will," Zeolla said. "Her screwball and curveball work really well, and her dropballs are pretty much unbeatable.

"She does have speed, definitely- but her location works really well." Roger Newell, Oak Park's head coach for the past 23 years, has no problem letting his pitcher and catcher work together to call a game. "Julia has played quite a few years and she knows what's working and what can work against certain batters," Newell said. "I'm also a believer that if catchers are going to make it to the next level, they need to learn how to call a game. That's a very important aspect of catching that's often forgotten in softball because so many adults call the game from the side."

For the remainder of this season and for years to come, Newell said he expects Rice to continue to improve. With Zeolla working behind the plate, the Eagles' battery should continue to be one of the area's best, he added.

"As she gets older, Julia will develop a better command of her pitches," Newell said. "She will learn to throw certain pitches in certain situations . . . not just go with her favorite pitch.

"Her favorite pitch can be even more exceptional if she sets it up. They will learn that. It's just something that comes with more experience and more games."