Over the past three and a half years, Eastern’s softball team has watched the maturation of one of its best pitchers.

Senior hurler Kristen Becker had pitched solidly over the past couple of years, but there were some doubts about where she wanted to play.

“Actually about two years ago I didn’t even want to continue pitching,” Becker said. “I just told coach (Lloydene Searle) that I only wanted to play first base.”

It turned out to be a good thing for Eastern that she has continued to stay on the mound.

Due to a key injury to Eastern’s second starting pitcher, junior Trish Sanders, Becker has inherited much of the responsibility for the pitching staff since Sanders went down.

“When Trish (Sanders) went down it gave Kristen (Becker) more opportunities to pitch more,” fellow senior Jen Green said. “But she is very inner-motivated. She sets her own goals and goes after them.”

Becker’s overall record of 5-11 doesn’t tell the entire story about how well she has pitched this year. With the Panther offense struggling for much of the year, the lack of run support for Becker is the primary reason for her record.

Looking past her record, Becker has been the most consistent and dynamic pitcher that Eastern has as of right now.

What could have been for Eastern’s pitching staff, has been the big question since Sanders broke her ankle in the weight room. The two formed a solid pair Eastern could turn to when in need of a key start.

However, since Sanders has been unable to play, the emphasis has been placed on Becker’s shoulders to keep the pitching staff on track.

So far she has answered the call to the best of her ability. She has started 16 games for the Panthers, and has eaten innings as she has gone through this season by completing 13 of those games.

She has pitched a total of 101 1/3 innings, in which she has only walked 19 batters and struck out 50.

“Her success is a tribute to her work ethic, and her desire to do as much for her team as she can,” Searle said. “I have to watch her because she will pitch every inning if she could.”

She proved that statement this past weekend, in a three game series against Tennessee State.

On the road, Becker started all three games and completed the first and third games of the series. In an odd turn of events, Becker started the second game of the doubleheader on Friday after finishing the first game.

She only pitched two innings, but still held Tennessee State scoreless and kept her team in the game.

As for the first and third games of the series, Becker completed both games and Eastern won both games.

“I think she really shined this weekend,” fellow senior Jen Green said. “She showed her senior leadership by working so hard and throwing so many innings.”

The work ethic Green was talking about has shown this entire year, as she has had to focus refine her pitching style. Because she is not an overpowering pitcher, she has to rely on changing speeds and fooling the hitters.

“I would say that because of her ability to throw a vast amount of different speeds makes her not overpowering, but she can be at certain times,” Searle said. “The way she pitches continues to show her testament to be a team player and a true winning player.”