Hamilton' s Abby Vandenberg home at third base: 'She is fearless'

HAMILTON - They don't call it the "hot corner" for nothing.

Third base is where the hardest balls are hit and it is the closest a fielder is to the hitter, especially in softball.

Hamilton's Abby Vandenberg has grown so used to it, it doesn't faze her anymore.

"The pressure of being at third base is the biggest thing. You know if you get a ball hit to you it is going to be smokin' hot and you have to get on it. A good hitter is hitting the ball at you. You have to play your best game at third," Vandenberg said. "I have been playing third base since I was 9 years old. It is my home. I take a lot of pride in it.

"Third base is my home."

It isn't easy, especially when players look to bunt. In softball, players show bunt more often, but also pull it back and slap at the ball, which creates some tough situations at third.

"Reading bunts is a hard thing, mentally and physically. You could be halfway up the line and not knowing if they are really going to bunt or not," she said.

Simply put, it is a dangerous position.

"She has great hand-eye coordination and she is fearless. When you play third base in softball and you are 50 feet away from the hitter, you better be pretty fearless," Hamilton coach Mark Behnke said.

Meanwhile, Vandenberg gets to feel the flip side of things when she is at the plate.

Her short, strong and compact swing mirrors her stature and allows her to drive the ball to all fields.

"She has done a really good job of self-adjusting her swing. She had a little bit of time off (with an injury) and when she came back, you expect a little rust, but every day you could see it coming," Behnke said. "She is so balanced in her power and all she has to do is put her bat on it and it is going to go."

Vandenberg crushed two home runs, a sacrifice fly and a double in Thursday's opening game against Grand Rapids Catholic Central, a 14-4 win. In the doubleheader sweep, she went 5-for-6 with 10 RBIs, adding another double and a single and a third run scored.

She is batting .404 this season with five doubles, four home runs, 25 RBIs and 14 runs scored.

"I am just having fun, enjoying my senior year. It is about the only time I can remember playing free like this," Vandenberg said.

It has the Hawkeyes (19-6) poised for another deep postseason run, this time without Division I pitcher Madie Jamrog.

"I feel like we have to pick up the fact that we lost Madie Jamrog. We had to figure out a way to gain what she gave us, but in a different way. That is what is coming with the bats," Vandenberg said. "The experience last year helps a lot, just to know we can do it. It gave us all confidence."

Including Vandenberg, who will play college softball at Grand Rapids Community College next year.

"She is a four-year player so she has gone through so much and it means a lot for her," Behnke said. "She just understands the game. Her softball IQ is off the charts. She is passing that to the other players on the team. As a coach, how do you not love that?"

Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.