When Nixa's Phoebe Gardner broke the Lady Eagles' all-time career hits record earlier this season, it shed a little more light on the career Morgan Jones had.
Jones held the previous record of 144 hits, a feat more remarkable considering she also pitched for Nixa.
It's not entirely unusual for standout pitchers to also excel with a bat. But it surely isn't a given. Both Nixa pitcher Maddy Meierer and Ozark pitcher Jordyn Foley have served as a flex player at times this season.
Nixa sophomore right fielder Paige Garetson's plans are to both pitch and hit in the future. She is the Lady Eagles' projected ace the next two seasons.
She reports the demands to get enough reps in the center circle and the batter's box often forces her to extend her practice time.
"It takes a lot of time and effort," Garetson said. "I hit a lot after practices. I stay after mostly every day to hit."
Entering Districts this week, Garetson has a .360 batting average and 10 walks have hiked her on-base percentage to .429. Her pitching stats include a 7-2 W-L record and 1.55 ERA over 58.1 innings.
Looking beyond high school, Garetson's hopes are she doesn't have to give up either job, unless an offer to exclusively pitch is too good to pass up.
"My goal in college is to do both," she said. "I don't want to go to college and just pitch. I want to play another position and hit. I want to do it all. If it comes down to it, though, I could go somewhere to pitch."
Garetson throws and hits left-handed. As a lead-off hitter, new Nixa opponents often assume she is a slap-hitter.
"A lot of people say, 'Watch her feet, watch her hands,' because maybe I'll bunt," Garetson said. "I try to look at the field and where they're not and hit the ball there. It's hard to do both (slap and hit). I've tried slap, but I like hitting. I can get more power and hit it further than slapping."
As for her pitching, Garetson is pleased with her improvement.
"It's gone really well, a lot better than last year," she said, "I've focused on spins a lot more and have gained some speed."
