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Freshman Harkey keyed North's memorable season
Regan Hill
North Iredell pitcher Karley Harkey batted .507 this season. As a pitcher, she struck out 208 batters.
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Published: June 27, 2009
Karley Harkey found her niche at a relatively young age, and North Iredell High's softball program is already beginning to reap the benefits.
Wasting no time making an immediate impact, Harkey stepped on the field as a freshman this season and led the Raiders to unprecedented heights for the program.
North can thank Cool Spring Elementary School, in part, for its sudden stardom. That's where Harkey discovered her passion for pitching.
Necessity opened the door.
"I actually didn't want to be a pitcher. I was more like an infielder," she said. "And then our elementary school team needed a pitcher, so they were like, 'Let's try this.' I just went from there and started loving it."
The Raiders had to love the numbers she put up as a rookie during North's run to the 3A state quarterfinals. Harkey, this year's R&L County Softball Player of the Year, was stellar almost every time she toed the rubber.
Relying predominantly on her riseball and "curve drop," she completed all 23 of North's games, compiling seven shutouts and one perfect game. Her 208 strikeouts and 1.4 earned-run average were second only to West Iredell's Hannah Pennell, who fanned 210 with a .98 ERA.
But Harkey also excelled at the plate. She was one of only two players in the county to bat over .500. She had 42 hits, including six triples and nine doubles, in 83 at-bats. Kathleen Pasquarella's .510 batting average for South Iredell was better by three points.
Raiders coach Steve Harkey attributes his daughter's early success at North to travel ball, which helped Karley craft her game.
"For the most part, she hasn't been treated like a freshman for a while," Steve said. "She's had that starting pitcher's role on her travel team and the same kinds of things expected of her."
No one could have expected the type of postseason surge North made this spring. The Raiders had never won a playoff game before reeling off three straight upset victories against higher seeds before losing to Asheville Roberson.
Nevermind the honor as the county's best player, Karley said the most satisfying part about her first season was the playoffs.
"We went the furthest this school has ever gone," she noted.
The road to the quarterfinals began with a surprising 3-1 victory over 2008 state semifinalist Enka, which boasts the most fast-pitch playoff wins of any school in North Carolina. Hard to believe it was the same North team that lost five of its last seven regular-season games to finish fifth in the North Piedmont Conference.
"That got our confidence back up," said Karley, who struck out five and was 3-for-4 at the plate against Enka. "Everybody knew we had that in us."
Newton Foard and R-S Central soon learned they had more, falling 4-0 and 2-1 to the Raiders in the second and third rounds, respectively. Karley threw a two-hitter and struck out seven in the shutout win over Foard. She held R-S Central hitless over the final three innings of a tight ballgame.
Admittedly, she hasn't mastered the emotional part of manning the pitcher's circle — particularly in pressure situations — despite her postseason performance.
The Raiders were locked in a scoreless tie in the bottom of the sixth against West Iredell in the teams' regular-season finale before things unraveled. Karley gave up six runs on five hits, including a pair of home runs, to the Warriors, who ended up winning 6-0.
"It started with the West Iredell game, when I gave up those two home runs," she said. "I get mad when I give them up, and I kind of show it, my emotions, on the mound."
Steve Harkey said they're working to remedy that.
" 'Don't fall apart on me late in the game if you give up a home run.' That's what I've been telling her," he said. "She needs to have ice in her veins, show no emotion out there and just do her job. I think that's what she's striving for."
Led by Karley, their rising star, the Raiders know what they're striving for in 2010. After all, they raised the bar for North softball.
"I think we set it pretty high," Karley said. "We're all hoping to go even further (in the playoffs) next year. We know we can do it."
EDITOR'S NOTE: For a complete listing of all-county softball players, see Saturday's print edition of the R&L.
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