University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Preseason Q&A with Coach Papa
January 18, 2019 | Softball
CHAPEL HILL – Nearing the end of the first two weeks of preseason practice, we sat down with head coach Donna J. Papa to hear more about the 2019 Tar Heels. Papa enters her 34th season at the helm of Carolina Softball with over 1,250 career wins.
Â
Go Heels: How has practice been going so far? What has stood out to you?
Coach Papa: We've done some good things and we have some things we need to work on. The area we need some work on the most is our defense, mainly because we have a lot of new faces in the infield. We lost two strong middles in Taylor Wike and Katelyn Shifflett. So now we have some younger players in those positions were you want to be strongest defensively. Right now we're working on our comfort and working side-by-side with various combinations to see how we can make that work. As we go forward, that's really something we're trying to spend time on and to set it moving in a great direction. However, we're really solid in the outfield with a lot of experience coming back in three seniors and a junior.
Â
Offensively, we have speed and we're really working every day in practice to find ways to be able to push the envelope when we get on base. We're looking to push the defense which will help ours to get us better all around. From a standpoint of getting on base and hitting, we've done some good things so far and put the ball in play. I'm not saying we're going to be a big home run hitting team, but I do think our emphasis from the fall is that we're really working on gap and hard hits. Eventually those will find their way into a hole and with our speed, we have a lot of tools in one person that gives us options as team to score.
Â
I've really liked what I've seen in our pitchers as a staff this year. Katie Grace Olinger has worked on new pitches and has worked hard to get more ground balls. Hannah Nommensen's confidence has improved. She has more swag on the mound. Hannah George is a great addition to our pitching staff. Having Brittany Pickett rested in the fall and now ready to go in the spring, I feel like our pitching staff is in a different place than last year. That's very encouraging given our opponents early on.
Â
It's trying to put all the pieces together and every day, we're working on different components. We're trying to work our way through everything. The fall is all about learning and teaching, where the spring is execution. Right now, our main emphasis is execution and being able to take what we did in the fall and put that into play now. We're working on competitive pressure situations, because that's what the game is.
Â
Go Heels: Can you explain the team's #GetTo mentality this season?
Coach Papa: When you talk about having opportunities, people always say that you "have to" do something. But it's really not, it's an opportunity you get to do those things every day that other people might not. It's a level of appreciation for the opportunity to go do something that you love from the time you were five or six years old. So we get to be a great teammate, we get to be around our team, we get to have opportunities and create moments. It's just a different mindset. When you say you "have to" it's a connotation of being negative, where 'get to' is positive. For me, coaching is something I get to do every day. I don't consider this a job. It's just a whole different way to look at what you're doing on a daily basis. It's having an appreciation for the opportunities you get every day to either get better or make a statement, improve, prepare and do all those things. That's what our team latched on to this season.
Â
Go Heels: With nine newcomers this season, does anyone stand out to you?
Coach Papa: The first one that comes to mind is Abby Settlemyre. Abby is a very strong candidate to be on the field on a regular basis in the middle. She's shown that she's a solid fielder with a good arm and can do some things up at the plate as a lefty hitter. She plays with confidence and has adapted. Hannah George also stands out to me as both a pitcher and a hitter. She'll give us some power that we need in our lineup. Her style of pitching will help put us in a good position throughout the season, especially ACC weekends to spread the load throughout the staff. Shayla Thompson is trying to soak up as much as she can from the seniors in the outfield and the slappers. That goes for all of our freshmen who are learning right now from the leadership of our seniors and returners.
Â
Tainasha Vines – she goes by T – will help us in terms of a base runner until we, as a coaching staff, see some other ways for her to get on the field. She has great background in track as a hurdler and jumper in terms of her running. We're just working to get the rust off since it's been a few years since her high school and travel ball days. It's tough coming in without playing the fall season but she's adjusted well to the team and it's a plus to have her.
Â
Go Heels: With a large group of underclassmen, what have you seen from the seniors throughout the fall and so far this spring?
Coach Papa: Our seniors as a group have given us good leadership for the team. We have a very cohesive team with great chemistry. They've all been more vocal in guiding the younger players. We have three solid seniors who return to the outfield and have great presence at the plate as lefty slappers. Berlynne Delamora is an anchor for us on the infield as a senior. She's worked to be better conditioned and more aggressive and vocal, knowing that we need that. Her leadership there is going to be critical for us with a young team.
Â
The Tar Heels begin their 2019 season at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge Feb. 8-10 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Carolina will take on four 2018 NCAA Tournament teams, including Baylor, BYU, South Carolina and Women's College World Series Runner-Up, Washington.
Â
Stay up to date with Carolina Softball by following the Tar Heels on Twitter and Instagram.
Â
Go Heels: How has practice been going so far? What has stood out to you?
Coach Papa: We've done some good things and we have some things we need to work on. The area we need some work on the most is our defense, mainly because we have a lot of new faces in the infield. We lost two strong middles in Taylor Wike and Katelyn Shifflett. So now we have some younger players in those positions were you want to be strongest defensively. Right now we're working on our comfort and working side-by-side with various combinations to see how we can make that work. As we go forward, that's really something we're trying to spend time on and to set it moving in a great direction. However, we're really solid in the outfield with a lot of experience coming back in three seniors and a junior.
Â
Offensively, we have speed and we're really working every day in practice to find ways to be able to push the envelope when we get on base. We're looking to push the defense which will help ours to get us better all around. From a standpoint of getting on base and hitting, we've done some good things so far and put the ball in play. I'm not saying we're going to be a big home run hitting team, but I do think our emphasis from the fall is that we're really working on gap and hard hits. Eventually those will find their way into a hole and with our speed, we have a lot of tools in one person that gives us options as team to score.
Â
I've really liked what I've seen in our pitchers as a staff this year. Katie Grace Olinger has worked on new pitches and has worked hard to get more ground balls. Hannah Nommensen's confidence has improved. She has more swag on the mound. Hannah George is a great addition to our pitching staff. Having Brittany Pickett rested in the fall and now ready to go in the spring, I feel like our pitching staff is in a different place than last year. That's very encouraging given our opponents early on.
Â
It's trying to put all the pieces together and every day, we're working on different components. We're trying to work our way through everything. The fall is all about learning and teaching, where the spring is execution. Right now, our main emphasis is execution and being able to take what we did in the fall and put that into play now. We're working on competitive pressure situations, because that's what the game is.
Â
Go Heels: Can you explain the team's #GetTo mentality this season?
Coach Papa: When you talk about having opportunities, people always say that you "have to" do something. But it's really not, it's an opportunity you get to do those things every day that other people might not. It's a level of appreciation for the opportunity to go do something that you love from the time you were five or six years old. So we get to be a great teammate, we get to be around our team, we get to have opportunities and create moments. It's just a different mindset. When you say you "have to" it's a connotation of being negative, where 'get to' is positive. For me, coaching is something I get to do every day. I don't consider this a job. It's just a whole different way to look at what you're doing on a daily basis. It's having an appreciation for the opportunities you get every day to either get better or make a statement, improve, prepare and do all those things. That's what our team latched on to this season.
Â
Go Heels: With nine newcomers this season, does anyone stand out to you?
Coach Papa: The first one that comes to mind is Abby Settlemyre. Abby is a very strong candidate to be on the field on a regular basis in the middle. She's shown that she's a solid fielder with a good arm and can do some things up at the plate as a lefty hitter. She plays with confidence and has adapted. Hannah George also stands out to me as both a pitcher and a hitter. She'll give us some power that we need in our lineup. Her style of pitching will help put us in a good position throughout the season, especially ACC weekends to spread the load throughout the staff. Shayla Thompson is trying to soak up as much as she can from the seniors in the outfield and the slappers. That goes for all of our freshmen who are learning right now from the leadership of our seniors and returners.
Â
Tainasha Vines – she goes by T – will help us in terms of a base runner until we, as a coaching staff, see some other ways for her to get on the field. She has great background in track as a hurdler and jumper in terms of her running. We're just working to get the rust off since it's been a few years since her high school and travel ball days. It's tough coming in without playing the fall season but she's adjusted well to the team and it's a plus to have her.
Â
Go Heels: With a large group of underclassmen, what have you seen from the seniors throughout the fall and so far this spring?
Coach Papa: Our seniors as a group have given us good leadership for the team. We have a very cohesive team with great chemistry. They've all been more vocal in guiding the younger players. We have three solid seniors who return to the outfield and have great presence at the plate as lefty slappers. Berlynne Delamora is an anchor for us on the infield as a senior. She's worked to be better conditioned and more aggressive and vocal, knowing that we need that. Her leadership there is going to be critical for us with a young team.
Â
The Tar Heels begin their 2019 season at the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge Feb. 8-10 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Carolina will take on four 2018 NCAA Tournament teams, including Baylor, BYU, South Carolina and Women's College World Series Runner-Up, Washington.
Â
Stay up to date with Carolina Softball by following the Tar Heels on Twitter and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
3B
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
P/1B
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
SS/2B
/ SoftballUNC Men's Basketball: Tar Heels Rally, Fall Late to Clemson in ACCT, 80-79
Friday, March 13
UNC Women's Lacrosse: Tar Heels Set Program Record with 30th Straight Win
Friday, March 13
THE ARENA DISCUSSION - Episode 3: Steve Newmark & Devin Duncan
Wednesday, March 11
UNC Baseball: Tar Heels Handle Bucknell, 13-3
Tuesday, March 10