Dexter SB trying to learn through mistakes as season winds down

There is no shortage of examples of young people in today’s society having to handle pressure constructively, and veteran Dexter High School coach Starla Pulley is cognizant of that fact and has desperately tried to get the Bearcat softball team to be able to reach a productive mental level over recent weeks.

At one point last month, the Bearcats (6-9) had won three consecutive games, but following that period of success, Dexter dropped five straight games.

That skid snapped with a recent 13-7 win over Woodland, but the tests keep coming, as the Bearcats host a powerful Doniphan (13-1) squad today at 4:30 p.m. at East Park.

“You try and talk to them about life lessons,” Pulley said. “The pressure that you feel out here (on the softball diamond) is nothing like you are going to have in real life.”

The Bearcats have proven to be their own worst enemy, at times.

In the past five games, Dexter has misplayed the ball defensively an astonishing 55 times.

Even in the win over the Cardinals, Pulley’s kids still made nine errors.

“We were slowly getting better (defensively),” Pulley said. “Earlier in the year, we would make 10 or 12 errors, but we got that down to like, four or five.”

“You have to learn how to deal with this pressure,” Pulley said, “so when you do get in the real world, you can handle the stresses that life gives you.

“Hopefully, we can kind of teach them some of those life lessons.”

Pulley lauded junior pitcher Amelia Jenkins, who has enjoyed a record-setting spring, for her ability to focus mentally through adverse situations. Pulley has spoken at length about having a “next play mentality,” just as she preaches to her volleyball athletes in the fall.

“In softball,” Pulley said, “the error that you make in the field, can go directly to your at-bat. If you are not mentally strong, and you’re still thinking about the play in the field, and then you go to the plate, and you can’t let that go.”

The Bearcats do have four seniors on this year’s roster. However, Pulley has said from the outset of this spring, only a few of her players have a lot of experience playing varsity-level softball. So, the learning and growth are to be expected – somewhat.

“They have to learn through (mistakes),” Pulley said.

Jenkins has tapped into her childhood memories to try and help her team through the tough times.

“I tell the team to be a Dory,” Jenkins said of the famous fish from the movie “Finding Nemo.” “You have short-term memory loss and just keep swimming.”

Dexter will wrap up the regular season with a road game at Portageville (12-10) on Wednesday at 4 p.m.