Superstitions and Striking Out the Side

There are superstitious people. And then there are athletes.

Whether it is to stave off losses or hitless streaks, baseball and softball players are notoriously among the most superstitious heading into competition. Did they put their left cleat on before their right? Did they sleep with their glove or bat under their pillow or wear a certain medal or eat a certain pregame meal? The physical rites and rituals that some athletes take to mentally ready their head space, bolster their mojo, reduce their anxiety, and increase their confidence are as much a part of the game as the mechanics, the physical delivery of the pitch or the swing of the bat.

Watch Holy Family University fifth-year senior right-handed pitcher Makenna Patterson, a native of Sellersville and a graduate of Pennridge High School. The routine is never altered. She receives the ball from the catcher, walks around the circle, puts rosin on her hand, licks her two fingers and wipes them on her pants.

"Then I step up on the mound, and I get the pitch," Patterson said. "It is the same thing every single time, every pitch. If I don't do that, I feel like I am going to throw a ball. When I do this, it distracts me from all the pressure that is on me. I think I do it to mitigate the anxiousness that I feel."

This mental edge has been a crucial component of Patterson's game since she first fell in love with the sport.

"I think I thrive as a pitcher because I know that a lot of people are relying on me," she said. "I wouldn't necessarily say I do well under pressure, but I want to make everybody happy. I like the calm, cool and collected delivery of (Phillies lefthander) Ranger Suarez. He has swag but is so chill and seems to be having so much fun. That's who I am trying to be on the mound."

Patterson decided on Holy Family University because it afforded her the opportunity to pursue a nursing degree and compete at a very high level. She has accepted a job as a pediatric nurse in the emergency unit at Lehigh Valley Hospital.

"The nursing program has been great," she said. "The softball has been competitive. I am trying to soak it all in, every single moment with my teammates on the field. I'll even miss the 6 a.m. lift sessions, when you wake up before the sun does, because everyone is showing up there together with the same energy and supporting each other. I can't imagine my life without softball. I am really going to miss it. I am trying to be really appreciative of every step, the bad games and the good games, because this time next year, my life is going to look a whole lot different."

Sure, she will no longer be delivering her two-seam fastball, her "favorite pitch," (she also has a commanding curve ball, screwball and change-up at her disposal), but Patterson will still be steeped in superstition and following the mantra (that is literally tattooed on her hip in her mother's handwriting) "everything happens for a reason."

"I went to Holy Family for a reason," she said. "I am close to home for a reason. My teammates and coaches have come into my life for a reason."

Like the number 12 that she wears, she could probably point to a dozen more destiny-defining moments, because everything that Makenna Patterson has been so blessed to experience has been for a reason.

For these memorable innings of her life, that reason has been softball.