Stealing bases, Setting Records: TLU Softball’s Caelee Clark continuing impressive sophomore season
SEGUIN, Texas—Caelee Clark still remembers the first time she practiced stealing bases in her early years of playing softball, learning from her dad, who was also her coach.
“I remember my dad telling me, ‘No matter what, slide into the base, just try to get there as quick as you can,’” the TLU second baseman said Thursday. “‘And always slide because you’re more likely to be safe.’ I would definitely say my dad is a big part of how I got my speed, and the rhythm, and just the whole aspect of stealing.”
Fast forward to the present day, and Clark is one of the most impressive base-stealers in college softball. She etched her name into the NCAA record book as a sophomore, as TLU’s leadoff hitter and starting second baseman broke the Division III record for stolen bases in a single-season just two weeks ago. On the final day of the regular season against St. Thomas, she swiped four bases in a Game 2 win, raising her season total to 78…and into the record books, passing TLU alum Kelly Jurden’s previous D-III record of 77, set in 2022.
Then in last weekend’s SCAC Tournament, in which the Bulldogs claimed their ninth tournament title in the last decade, Clark added six more stolen bases, leaving her just 12 shy of tying the all-time NCAA single-season stolen base record, regardless of division.
“I really don’t think about it too much, because ultimately, I’m here to play my game and score runs for my team,” Clark said of the record-breaking achievement. “I’m here to steal some bases and get on-base, but as long as we win, I don’t care too much [about the individual accolades].”
The team-first mentality has been a significant aspect of TLU’s overall success, with the Bulldogs entering next week’s NCAA Tournament at 31-3, ranked No. 9 in the country, having lost just once since March 18.
Of course, the standard of excellence in head coach Wade Wilson’s program is well-known in Texas and Division III softball circles. And it’s one of the reasons why Clark, a native of Montgomery, Texas, chose to take her talents to TLU after a high school career in which she earned All-State honors. But the academic aspect of the program and the university itself were equally important factors for a student-athlete who is majoring in psychology and minoring in biology.
“Coach Wilson always helps us make it work,” Clark said. “It’s school and then softball. This program does a really good job of prioritizing your academics. He’s preparing us to not only be great softball players but also to be able to go into the world and be great human beings.”
Her impact at TLU has been nothing short of tremendous for the last two years, as her all-around skill set continues to be highlighted time and time again. The baserunning is certainly a big part of it—breaking an NCAA record is a rare and difficult feat—but she also holds the SCAC single-season record for walks in a season, with her 31 in 2023. Not to mention the fact that, by winning SCAC Player of the Year honors, Clark is just the third player in conference history to earn the honor in consecutive seasons. She is hitting .479 in 34 games, and went .534 at the plate during the regular season SCAC schedule. At second base, she has posted a fielding percentage of .965 with 65 putouts against just four errors, helping turn seven double plays in the infield. The stats all point towards the same bottom line: Clark has become one of the SCAC’s most dangerous players in just two seasons.
“Being a freshman coming here, I didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “I’m super thankful to Coach Wilson for putting me in that leadoff spot and allowing me to be successful and use the speed that I have. Also, we have so many great upperclassmen who are amazing leaders, amazing people, and I feel like I’ve learned so much by observing the way they handle intense situations in games. Taking what I’ve learned from them and applying it to my game and the way I compete has helped a lot.”
The fact that Clark is in position to steal so many bases over the course of a game is a credit to her plate approach. A keen eye at the plate and good bat speed has led to an on-base percentage of .540, meaning she’ll reach base roughly once in every two plate appearances. And once she’s on base, there’s not much opposing catchers can do. Centenary’s Jaeden Thrasher led the SCAC in runners caught stealing this season, with 18, yet in a 6-4 TLU win in Seguin on April 13, Clark swiped five bases with Thrasher behind the plate.
According to Clark, her approach to stealing begins well before she even reaches base.
“I usually pay attention to how the pitcher is pitching before I even go up to bat,” Clark noted. “I get my timing there. Once I find my way on base, I’m still remembering [that timing]. I rock back and forth on base, and try to move my body with [the pitcher’s]. We can’t leave until the ball leaves the pitcher’s hand so I start my movement when their pitching arm is at 12 o’clock.”
The postseason makes stealing bases even more challenging as well, considering the umpiring crews increase from two to three. The timing has to be perfect. Leaving too early will result in an immediate out, but leaving too late could be just as costly. And in the postseason, one play along those lines could be the difference in a high-stakes game.
“It is pretty hard, especially in the postseason, when we have a three-man crew,” Clark added, “because they’re looking for that. They’re looking for people that are leaving the base early.”
Besides Clark and her 84 stolen bases, no other player in Division III has more than 50 this season. Even more impressive, of the nation’s Top 10 base-stealers, all except for two have played at least four more games than Clark. She averages 2.47 stolen bases per game, with the next highest average being Lehman’s Lizbeth Perez, at 1.63.
The same quickness seen on the basepaths is evident with her glove at second base in a perhaps underrated element of TLU’s overall success. The Bulldogs take plenty of pride in their defensive performance, and that includes Clark, who has made plenty of plays for the TLU infield over the course of the season’s 31 wins thus far. Notably, TLU as a team had just one error in three games at last week’s SCAC Tournament.
“It’s easy to get wrapped up in all the stolen base stuff, but we do take pride in everything that we do,” Clark said. “Just today Coach Scott was talking about how our team is known for having speed and getting on base, but people are recognizing us recently for how good our defense is. I couldn’t do it without Linzee Leal [at shortstop].We have a great middle infield chemistry and I’m blessed to be one of her teammates.”
When it comes to chemistry, Clark says this season has been exceptional in regards to the cohesiveness in the program. After falling in the SCAC title game last year, TLU reclaimed its conference crown last Saturday, and now turns its sights towards the NCAA Tournament. And the Bulldogs press on as a close-knit group, aiming to continue elevating the program’s already-high standard. And who knows? Maybe there are more record-breaking performances from Clark in this season’s future, too.
“I love these girls. I say it almost every day. I look forward to going to practice and spending time with them. There’s a different feel this year with this group. I feel like our chemistry is top-tier, we all get along and support each other. Last year, personally I think I felt like I was always looking at, ‘We’re going to win the national championship.’ But we have to win regionals, win super regionals, and take one step at a time, not looking too far into the future. We have to take it day-by-day, win some games, and stay in it for as long as we can.”
Concordia claims 5th ASC Baseball crown
An offensive outburst paved the way to an incredible ASC Tournament title for Concordia (TX), as the fourth-seeded Tornados went 4-0 in Marshall, Texas, and clinched a spot in next week’s NCAA Tournament in impressive fashion. Concordia defeated UT-Dallas on consecutive days, winning the championship in a 9-0 shutout of the Comets on Sunday for the program’s fifth conference title.
Leading up >>> Concordia entered the tournament having won four straight series against Ozarks, Sul Ross State, McMurry, and Howard Payne, but walked into Marshall as the No. 4 seed with a 12-12 record, having bounced back after an 0-6 start to ASC play.
Home-run hitting >>> The bats came alive for the Tornados in hitter-friendly Woods Field, as the entire lineup produced runs en masse. Concordia scored at least six runs in all four games, and averaged 9.66 runs per game in its final three wins over ETBU and UT-Dallas (twice). Even more impressive, the Tornados tallied 10 home runs on the weekend, including four in the 11-6 win over ETBU. It marked the second time ETBU allowed four home runs in a game this season.
Morrow named MVP >>> Senior Chris Morrow was at the center of that offensive success, with two hits apiece in all four games in Marshall. He went 8-for-18 at the plate, hitting a homer in every game, along with 8 RBIs and 6 runs scored.
For the final time >>> UT-Dallas and Concordia fittingly met in the title game in both programs’ final ASC Tournament appearances, as UTD moves up to Division II and Concordia departs for the SCAC next year. Since 2018, the ASC Baseball Tournament title was won by either Concordia or UTD in five of the six years. The two programs combined for eight conference tournament titles during their time in the league.
From the loser’s bracket to the title game, Centenary wins the SCAC
A rain delay, three meetings with Texas Lutheran, and a history-making performance highlighted the headlines as Centenary captured the SCAC baseball title on Monday in Cleburne, Texas. The Gents, who are Louisiana’s lone D-III institution, had six Texas natives in their starting lineup for the tournament-clinching win over TLU as Centenary became just the fourth team since 1995 to win the SCAC Tournament out of the loser’s bracket.
The path to the championship game >>> Centenary opened tournament action on Thursday in Cleburne, and put up five runs over the first two innings against Southwestern, earning a 6-4 win. But then came a loss to TLU, 5-2, as the Gents were sent into the loser’s bracket. On Saturday night, with storms rolling in, Centenary took a 3-0 lead against No. 9 Trinity in the bottom of the first before lightning forced the postponement of the contest to Sunday. When the two teams returned to the field late Sunday morning, a thrilling elimination contest unfolded, with Trinity battling from a 6-0 deficit to tie the score at 6-6 in the eighth. But in the bottom of the ninth, a bunt single from Ben Berglund with runners on first and second resulted in a throwing error against Trinity, bringing Austyn Benoit across the plate for the winning run that sent the Gents to a rematch with TLU.
Two wins over TLU >>> Centenary beat TLU twice in two days, pulling off a difficult achievement against the Bulldogs, who had just beaten the Gents the day prior. But on Sunday, an 11-inning game unfolded, with Centenary putting up three runs in the Top of the 11th for a 10-8 victory. Then on Monday, they clinched the title, 9-5, in large part due to a four-run sixth that put the Gents in the lead for good.
Championship Monday >>> 2024 marked only the second time in the history of the SCAC Tournament that the title was decided on a Monday. The first? 1997, due to weather, as Southwestern won the league title over Trinity.
Texas teams headed to the NCAAs
Concordia Men’s Tennis: The Tornados began action at the UChicago Regional on Thursday and claimed the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament win, defeating 46th-ranked Luther, 5-1. CTX moved on and faced No. 2 Chicago on Friday.
Trinity Men’s Tennis: SCAC champions will head to Middlebury, Vermont, for the NCAA Regionals and face the winner of MIT and Bridgewater State on Saturday, May 11, at 1 p.m. CT.
Trinity Women’s Tennis: The champions in the SCAC clinched their 11th conference title in the last 12 years, and will begin their NCAA Tournament run on the East Coast at the NC Wesleyan Regional in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. The Tigers battle No. 20 Christopher Newport on Saturday, May 11, at 1 p.m. CT.
UTD Women’s Tennis: The Comets clinched their fifth straight conference title on April 27, and will open the NCAA Tournament on Friday morning at 11 a.m. CT in Baltimore. UTD faces Albright College.
Texas D3s in the National Rankings
Baseball
ETBU: #3 (D3Baseball.com Top 25)
Trinity: #13 (D3Baseball.com Top 25)
Softball
ETBU: #2 (NFCA Top 25)
Texas Lutheran: #9 (NFCA Top 25)
Men’s Tennis
Trinity: #10 (ITA Top 50: May 8)
Southwestern: #36 (ITA Top 50: May 8)
Concordia: #47 (ITA Top 50: May 8)
Women’s Tennis
Trinity: #16 (ITA Top 50: May 8)
Southwestern: #46 (ITA Top 50: May 8)
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