Eastern softball coach Jamie McGroarty described Steph Vuono as a "goofball."
"She keeps the team laughing," he said. "She doesn't take herself too seriously, which I think is a great quality. She's works hard, she's a tremendous athlete, but she knows she's here to have fun, too."
Vuono, a senior, is Eastern's star player and ace pitcher. But the pressure that often comes with those titles doesn't seem to bother her.
As Vuono sees it, high school softball is a chance to play the game she loves with girls whom she described as some of her "best friends." And it doesn't hurt that those girls happen to be talented softball players poised to make a run at a sectional title.
The Vikings, who will begin their season Saturday at Overbrook, graduated just one senior from a team that has gone deep into the South Jersey playoffs the past two seasons, including winning a sectional championship in 2010.
"I don't try to overexaggerate my role just because I'm the pitcher," Vuono said. "We have a lot of seniors who have played together for the last four years, some of us even longer. So I know I have a great team backing me up, so it's definitely not just me out here.
"And the bond the team has this year is better than anything that I've ever experienced before. We know each other's strengths and weaknesses inside and out. We know how to pick each other up and say it's OK when we make a mistake. And that's going to be big for us this year."
Just the fact that Vuono is in the circle for Eastern is a testament to her team-first mind-set.
Vuono acknowledges that playing shortstop is her passion - it's what she will play next season for The College of New Jersey, and it's what she plays for her summer team. But she pitches for Eastern because that's what the team needs.
"Fielding is something that I've absolutely always loved to do. Nothing really beats that for me," Vuono said. "But I like pitching, too. Getting back into a rhythm as a pitcher can definitely be a struggle because I don't pitch during the summer. I only pitch during the high school season.
"But it's kind of just like riding a bike. As soon as I get a few weeks of practice in, I feel like I'm right back to where I need to be."
McGroarty continues to be amazed by just how far Vuono has come as a pitcher, despite not being able to give it a year-round commitment.
"A big part of that is her maturity in the last two years. That's been a big benefit for us as a team and for her as an individual player, as well," he said. "You look for your pitcher to control the tempo of the game, control the emotion, and she does that for us. She's come a long way in that respect."
Last season, Vuono was 17-4 with a 1.64 ERA - stats due much more to her finesse than power in the circle. She led the Vikings to the South Jersey Group 4 semifinals, but the team failed to defend its title, falling by 2-0 to Absegami.
The loss serves only as motivation for Eastern.
"We're all working hard towards reaching that goal," Vuono said. "Winning that title is important to us this year. All of us are really focused on being able to play our best and perform the best that we possibly can."
Contact Chris Melchiorre
at rallysports@phillynews.com.
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