Junior shortstop MaTaia Lawson has no conscience when she’s at the plate for Andrew.
“I don’t swing soft,” she said.
The Texas recruit would rather not hit you when she smokes a line drive. So duck.
As for car windows? Lawson didn’t feel bad at all earlier this season when one of her rockets over the fence in center shattered a front windshield.
“No, I didn’t,” Lawson said, laughing. “Because why would you park behind the field? You know what kind of team we have on the field right now.”
Lawson contributed with her speed as well as her swing Monday afternoon for the host Thunderbolts in a 6-0 nonconference victory over crosstown rival Tinley Park.
Clare Hester had two hits and two RBIs for Andrew (21-4-1). Maddie Hanik added a triple, while junior left-hander Kerra O’Reilly tossed a three-hit shutout.
Natalie Gomez went 3-for-3 for Tinley Park (14-7).
With the wind howling in, Lawson — nor anyone else, for that matter — reached the parking lot. But she did get on base twice and scored both times.
In the fourth inning, she waited out her team-leading 14th walk. On the first pitch to Hanik, Lawson stole her 21st base of the season. Then, she went to third on a shallow fly out to right field. Hester brought her home with a single.
Andrew coach Alyssa Gunther might enjoy that part of her game most of all.
“She doesn’t like taking walks, but she creates havoc on the base paths,” Gunther said. “She contributes in so many different ways, with her glove, with her legs, with her bat and even with her personality and voice.
“It’s awesome to have a player who can do it all. Her bat is obviously a huge threat. Teams know that, but she does a really good job staying true to herself.”
After transferring from Marist to Andrew, Lawson had a sophomore season to remember. She earned first team all-area and all-state honors, batting .589 with 54 runs, 14 homers and 47 RBIs.
She played hurt the entire season with a torn labrum in her left shoulder. She also played through the summer season before having surgery in August.
“The big difference was with my hitting,” Lawson said. “My shoulder would always be down because I couldn’t lift it too high. Now, my hitting range is way better.”
Indeed, Lawson is hitting a team-best .593 with 12 doubles, five triples, 13 homers and 46 RBIs.
The power potential is always there, but so is the consistency. Lawson has reached base on 70 of her 97 plate appearances. She has struck out just once.
“I just don’t think about things too much when I’m up there,” Lawson said. “I go up, and if it’s a good pitch, I just swing. I don’t plan on hitting home runs, I just hit to hit.
“And when I get on base, I try to get around as fast as I can.”
Batting third, Lawson has provided a bounty of RBI opportunities for cleanup hitter Hanik. The senior third baseman is hitting a robust .567 with 13 doubles, 10 homers and a whopping 61 RBIs.
“I love hitting behind MaTaia,” Hanik said. “Whenever she’s on base, I know she’s going to score. During at-bats, usually when MaTaia’s up there and I’m in the circle, we’re always talking to each other.
“Even in today’s game, there was one time when their second baseman was in the outfield. I told MaTaia about that, and the next thing you know, she was on first base after a ground ball to second.”
In the field, Lawson and sophomore second baseman Ana Cisek have their own connection.
“We cover a lot of ground together,” Cisek said. “It’s not that easy to get a hit up the middle against us. And it’s so fun working together at practice every day, getting even better.”
Tony Baranek is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
