Being part of a record-setting team for a second consecutive year was great.
Being named to two All-American teams was really cool.
And earning the Golden Shoe Award for leading Division II with the highest stolen-base percentage nationally was pretty special as well.
But becoming the first NCAA Division II Rawlings Gold Glove winner in the history of Wilmington (Del.) University’s softball program? Well, that practically knocked over Tristyn Stewart like a high and tight brushback pitch.
“I had no idea that was going to happen,” Stewart, a Centreville resident and 2021 Queen Anne’s County High graduate, said of the award given to the country’s nine best defensive players — one at each position. “The Gold Glove was the last award to come out. I was like, ‘OK, I have gotten these accolades. That’s cool.’ I was very content with where I was. And then the Golden Glove kind of hit me literally in the face.
“I knew that the Golden Shoe was a possibility and the All-American was,” Stewart continued. “I did not know that my name was even entered for the Golden Glove. I had no idea that was even a possibility.”
But the junior left fielder who helped Wilmington to a school-record 46-16 win-loss slate this season that included a second straight East Super Regional championship and trip to the College World Series, made it a possibility. Stewart chased down drives, made diving grabs, and did not make an error in 103 chances while totaling 96 putouts and seven assists.
“It’s awesome that she got the Golden Shoe for stolen bases,” Wilmington head coach Mike Shehorn said. “But for her to get the Golden Glove with all the top defensive players that we’ve had on our team? Last year we had the player of the year in our conference and region. This year we felt like (center fielder) Taylor Gillis was one of the best defensive players we’ve ever had. And Tristyn just rose to the occasion.
“She threw kids out this year from left field on just absolute dimes, where the other team’s coaches just couldn’t believe it,” Shehorn added. “They were like, ‘Where did that come from?’”
Part of it is arm strength.
Stewart and Gillis partnered for pre-game warmups. By the time they had gone through their progression, they were standing on opposite foul lines, throwing rockets back and forth, with Stewart at times launching her final throw over her teammate’s head.
“I played football when I was young,” Shehorn said. “I was a quarterback and I’ve always had a pretty good arm. I kept noticing these two throwing the ball from one side of the field all the way across to the other side. And I’m like, ‘Man, one of these days I’m going to jump out there and do it with them.’
“So I started doing warmups, and I would partner with them,” Shehorn continued. “And I could never throw the ball as far as Tristyn. I’d give it everything I had but I couldn’t.”
But that strong arm was only part Stewart’s defensive success.
“Her arm strength is unbelievable,” Shehorn said. “And it’s not just the strength of it, but the accuracy. We always say she has a rocket for an arm, and we dare people to try and run on her. Try to tag up and run. Try to score from second because your chances of being thrown out are pretty good because she has an absolute cannon.”
While Stewart couldn’t pinpoint where exactly her accuracy came from, she acknowledged longevity in the game and all her past coaches were big reasons. She also noted playing catcher as a freshman and sophomore at Chesapeake High was a major factor.
“Having to work in practice on that accuracy 24-7, with throwing down to bases and stuff like that, I was always able to hit my target pretty well while being a catcher,” Stewart said. “But now that I’m not utilized behind the plate in college that accuracy is now me throwing to my throwing partners, or to the base.”
As for opposing catchers getting the ball to a base before Stewart’s arrival on a steal attempt? Good luck.
“To steal more than 30 bases in a season is unbelievable,” Shehorn said of Stewart, who swiped 54 bases in 56 attempts, which included a streak of 38. “But to go 50-some and only be thrown out twice it’s just. …
“People knew we were going to do it,” Shehorn said of running Stewart. “There was no secret. People nowadays have stats and everything so they knew she was stealing. It was just a matter of what pitch. They tried everything. We had teams, they would try and change their defense, would bring an outfielder in and have two infielders around the bag. They would pitchout and for whatever reason they couldn’t get her.”
Making Stewart’s performance on the base paths more impressive was the fact she stole only 19 as a sophomore and was caught eight times.
“Last year I lacked confidence that I was even as fast as I was, which is why I never had as many stolen bases,” Stewart said.
High school opponents and fans got to see Stewart’s speed her only year playing for Queen Anne’s County in 2021 — the 2020 season was canceled due to Covid 19 — when she stole 18 bases and seemingly tracked down everything hit her way in center field. Lions fans also fondly remember how that season ended, with Stewart racing home on Kamryn Brandt’s two-out single in the eighth inning to give Queen Anne’s a 2-1 victory over Calvert for their first state softball championship.
But Stewart’s confidence on the base paths grew steadily this season, especially when she found success against top-flight catchers from top-ranked schools.
“Stealing off of them and sliding in with ease and being safe, it kind of boosted my confidence and my morale to where I was like, ‘OK, so I can basically steal on anyone and I’m not getting thrown out,’” Stewart said. “That confidence was just built continuously throughout the season which allowed me to have a lot more success.”
Shehorn agreed better competition made Stewart better.
“It’s crazy because I had another kid here a few years back, Rosa’Lyn Burton, she was 60 for 60 in stolen bases and was our first Golden Shoe winner (in 2019),” Shehorn said. “I felt like Tristyn had to do it against more mature-type catchers. Not knocking or taking anything away from Burton, but the catchers that we’ve seen this year have been top level. In fact, going into one of the games in the World Series, one of the catchers was a two-time All-American, and somebody made the comment that they’re not probably going to steal a lot of bases against her. I think Tristyn ended up stealing two in that game.”
Like her defensive prowess, Stewarts success stealing bases comes from multiple parts.
“For one thing she’s very, very competitive,” Shehorn said. “It’s not just her speed that makes her different. It’s her competitiveness. It’s her refuse-to-lose mentality. I always say when we play against a team that has an elite-type pitcher, I always like Tristyn to be one of the first to go after her because it seems like the better the pitching, or the bigger the moment, the better she competes.”
She’s also a quick study.
Stewart led the Wildcats with 81 hits and 57 runs this season, and was second on the team in batting average (.424) and on-base percentage (.455), helping her earn second-team All-American honors on the National Fastpitch Coaches Association team, and third-team honors on the Division II Conference Commissioners Association squad.
She was among Wilmington’s first three batters, often batting leadoff. But as soon as the game began and the opposition was going through its warm-up, Stewart was studying.
“She’s not just thinking about her at-bat,” Shehorn said. “She’s thinking about and watching the catcher to see what her release time is like. Who’s covering the bag? Are they able to get there in time? What’s the pitcher’s stride and windmill type so she knows how to get her timing on that.
“I think the other thing is, some kids it takes a couple steps to get going,” Shehorn added. “Within two or three steps she’s at top speed. Her burst is second to none.”
Wilmington defeated Adelphi twice to win its second consecutive Division II East Super Regional title this season. The Wildcats lost 2-1 to Western Washington in their World Series opener, but then bounced back, defeating Augustana, 5-2, to become the first team in any sport in school history to win a national tournament game. The Wildcats’ season ended with a 6-4 loss in nine innings to Lenoir-Rhyne.
“You have goals that are achievable if you do certain things,” Shehorn said. “And then you have those goals that are kind of far-reached type goals that you would love to get to, you just never know if you’re going to. Ever since I’ve been here, I’ve always said, my goal was to get to a World Series and have a chance to win one. Year after year we just kept building and building, and getting different pieces to the puzzle added. And she is definitely an important piece.”
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