Emilee Blythe's pitching inspires Sacred Heart softball's team and success on the field

When Emilee Blythe enters the pitching circle for the Sacred Heart Knights, she plays for the team that's behind her.

Blythe, one of three seniors for the Knights, is a huge contributor on a young Sacred Heart softball team that improved to 10-8 with a sweep of Wichita Trinity on Tuesday at Bill Burke Park.

Blythe had 25 strikeouts in the doubleheader, won by the Knights, 13-3 and 11-7, and now has 143 on the season.

"When the girls are backing me up, they're really positive for me, and then I have a good relationship with Bob (Martin, Sacred Heart coach)," Blythe said. "I know if I'm doing bad, they'll back me and Bob will always have a good correction for me. I just know if I flow well, everybody behind me will back me."

Martin added that it is difficult to keep the ball out of Blythe's hand when she's pitching well. After throwing a complete game in the opener of Tuesday's doubleheader, she wanted more, especially since it was her last high school home game at Bill Burke Park.

"I knew I was going to have to go back to her at some point," said Martin, who brought Blythe back in to pitch in the third inning with the Knights trailing 5-1.

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Blythe's passion for softball began at a young age

Blythe got started in softball with t-ball and playing in the yard with her dad, Tom Blythe.

Eventually, she fell in love with the sport and wanted to play it more. She joined a travel team when she lived in Illinois. Blythe left that team after sixth grade when she moved from Salem, Illinois, to Salina.

"I had a great team back home and a great pitching coach," Blythe said. "Then I moved here, and I met some of my best friends that I played with every summer. I've had great coaches over the years."

Blythe has had several special moments in softball since moving to Salina. She has played in summer tournaments and even pitched a no-hitter.

Last year, Blythe combined with Kelsie Gack to pitch a no-hitter in a Class 2A regional quarterfinal against Ellinwood. Blythe said she learned some things from Gack.

"I could rely on her for everything," Blythe said. "This year, I've definitely learned that I wish I could pitch as much as Kelsie. She just kept going. I think I've learned this year that I need to bear down on my pitching for sure."

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Blythe is a key to the Knights' success

When Blythe is clicking, the Knights know they can back her up. Even when she's not in the circle, she can play any position she's asked to play.

"She's been the focal point of our defense," Martin said. "She fields well. She keeps the girls going. The girls really feed into her.

"They're very loud with her. But then she does the small things, too. When she hits (and) gets on base, she runs the bases well. She stood in and caught for us one game up in Minneapolis this year when our catcher was out after pitching a full game."

Fellow senior Ellie Woodall, who serves as a co-captain with Blythe, said Blythe is a natural athlete.

"When she's pitching good, it picks everybody up and we pick her up when she's not having the best night," Woodall said. "She definitely leads our team with her pitching.

"With Emilee, you can always count on her because she just gets the job done. You can always count on Emilee to get to pitch things that they can hit or that they can't hit."

Martin said that as captains, Blythe and Woodall lead the team in different ways.

"We talked before the season. I needed three things out of them, and they each give me something of those three," Martin said.

Woodall, who joined the softball team during her junior season, got help from Blythe in regaining those softball skills she had prior to returning after running track.

"She's much more mentally strong about just everything that she does," Woodall said. "She's just a great teammate. I just love playing with her."

Softball is potentially in Blythe's future

With two regular season games remaining and the postseason just under two weeks away, Blythe is looking to enjoy every moment of it.

After this season, Blythe is considering playing on an intramural team while attending Kansas State University.

"I'm glad we're going out on a good note; like tonight was great," Blythe said. "Two wins on senior night, but it's sad because I've grown up playing on this field since I was in sixth grade. Pitching my last pitch on Bill Burke was kind of bittersweet."

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What's next for Sacred Heart

Sacred Heart closes out the regular season with a doubleheader at Ellsworth on Monday.

"We just need to make sure we keep getting at-bats," Martin said. "I don't like the layoff we're going to have. Our pitching will be fine. The timing of the batting is gonna have to be hard."

Dylan Sherwood has been a sports reporter for the Salina Journal since August 2019. He can be reached at dsherwood@salina.com or on Twitter @DSherwoodSJ

This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: Emilee Blythe helping young Sacred Heart softball team succeed