A new rotation: Reeves and newcomers find their roles on the mound

Last season, Madilyn Reeves was a freshman on a Miami University softball pitching staff that included fifth-year Ashley Hitchcock and sixth-year Addy Jarvis.

This season, she’s Miami’s only returning pitcher.

Reeves, now a sophomore, is the anchor of a four-player pitching staff that includes Shelbie Krieger, a true freshman, Léa Chevrier, a junior transfer from Florida Southwestern State College and Alex Caouette, a sophomore transfer from Western Michigan University.

“I knew I was going to be someone that the other pitchers could really lean on if they needed help or anything,” Reeves said. “I think just the experience is different from last year because I had other people with more experience at this level.”

Reeves ranks second in the nation this season in games started (31) and has pitched more than 200 innings for Miami this season. Her 173 strikeouts tie for 18th in the nation with Mississippi State University’s Raelin Chaffin.

“[Reeves] has done great,” head coach Mandy Gardner-Colegate said. “She's kind of been our leader in the bullpen just from a sense of knowing the standard that was set here, and obviously knowing our conference.”

But she isn’t the only RedHawk pitcher who’s been highly present in the circle. Chevrier and Krieger have seen 26 and 13 appearances, respectively, this season.

“I think we're all getting to the point where we're all kind of level and doing the same thing, all working towards the same stuff,” Reeves said. “I think [the new pitchers] have done a really good job of adjusting just to a new place and getting to know their routines.”

Chevrier’s transition from junior college to Division I initially presented a challenge, but she said she has settled in well at Miami.

“For me, it was kind of difficult at the beginning, just because the level of play is different,” Chevrier said. “But right now, I feel like I'm in a good space.”

Alongside a largely new pitching staff is an entirely new coaching staff led by Gardner-Colegate. Pitching is an area of expertise for Gardner-Colegate, who pitched at both the University of Michigan and the University of Maryland and was the pitching coach at the University of Iowa for two seasons.

Despite the individualized nature of the position, she emphasizes a group mindset for the RedHawks, frequently reminding her athletes that they win and lose as a team. She also highlighted the importance of preventing the mound from feeling too quiet.

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“Pitching is hard,” Gardner-Colegate said. “I mean, [the pitchers] already feel like they're on an island, but if it's also silent, then that's really tough. Having that ability to know that their teammates are behind them, whether it's the infielders, outfielders or even the people in the dugout, it’s just so important to have that support.”

Togetherness has been key for the RedHawks in a season that included what Gardner-Colegate described as arguably the toughest out-of-conference schedule the program has ever seen.

Prior to the start of Mid-American Conference (MAC) play, the RedHawks played 13 games against Power Four opponents. They currently sit at third place in the MAC behind Central Michigan University and Ohio University.

According to Chevrier, part of Miami’s cohesive strength lies in the contrasts between the pitchers.

“We're all different, and we throw different stuff, which I think is good,” Chevrier said. “Maddie [Reeves] is more upspin and I’m more downspin, so then the other teams don't know what to expect.”

According to Reeves, she and Chevrier will often pitch a full game during the week, helping each other out by finishing each other’s games when needed.

During a weekend series, the strategy shifts, and the staff will often split the arms up.

Gardner-Colegate said she readies her pitchers for success by putting together rigorous “bullpens,” or practice workouts. Each bullpen is customized to each member of her staff based on what she needs to work on, whether that be tightening up spin or simply throwing strikes.

She also said that her players’ personalities and passion have done some of the work for her as a coach.

“All of [the pitchers] have an uncanny work ethic,” Gardner-Colegate said. “They're extremely competitive. They wanna go out and perform the best they can for their team. That piece of it has been just really easy for me as a coach.”

Gardner-Colegate hopes to add a fifth pitcher in a season to come, following a model more similar to baseball by adding a closer. However, unlike a baseball team, which carries a large number of arms and often limits pitchers on games and innings, softball teams often have just a handful of pitchers that can each throw multiple games back-to-back if needed.

Additionally, a softball pitch is a more natural motion than a baseball pitch, which allows for the smaller number of pitchers on a roster.

Gardner-Colegate also believes that women’s mobility and flexibility may play a role in this phenomenon, along with the trajectories of players in the sport.

“From a longevity standpoint, we pretty much play college softball and then we're done,” Gardner-Colegate said. “With baseball players, there's an opportunity for them to go pro, so I think their baseball life longevity is a little bit different as well. I really do think that has something to do with it.”

As Gardner-Colegate looks to maximize the payoff from her team’s time playing collegiate softball, she is focusing on the postseason. The RedHawks have one more series against the University of Buffalo Bulls at home before setting their sights on the MAC tournament starting May 7 in Akron.

The RedHawks won the previous three MAC championships from 2022 to 2024 under former head coach Kirin Kumar, and Gardner-Colegate said she wants to continue building upon the program’s success. With a long-term goal of winning a super-regional, she likened Miami to the James Madison University Dukes, who made a run at the national title in 2021 before falling to the University of Oklahoma Sooners in the NCAA semifinals.

“James Madison, a few years ago, made it to the World Series, and they're in the [Coastal Athletic Association], and it's very similar to the MAC,” Gardner-Colegate said. “I really feel like that can happen here if we get the right pieces in place, and from a recruiting standpoint, our class that's coming in next year and then the following year is extremely strong.”

The RedHawks look to continue their championship-winning streak at the 2025 MAC tournament next week. As they look to bring home another title, Reeves and Chevrier feel confident in their abilities to lead the team defensively by working together.

“We'll pick each other up,” Reeves said. “Just because of how we throw, it complements the other person. My up compliments [Chevrier’s] down.”

The RedHawk pitching staff will head into the final week of the regular season with an ERA (4.28), nearly a full run higher than their end-of-year ERA last season (3.55). When Iowa hired her, Gardner-Colegate saw the ERA of the pitchers improve from 5.03 to 2.57 from year one to year two.

@LindsaySte14240

stevenL7@miamioh.edu