By Jim Hague
Kelsey Lucas knew that her final season with the Rutgers-Newark softball program wasn’t going to be an easy one.
After all, Lucas was the lone senior on an extremely young Scarlet Raider roster.
And Lucas was coming off shoulder surgery that she had to vigorously rehabilitate.
Then in the offseason, the Scarlet Raider administration decided to go in another direction, not renewing the contract of former coach Patty Clarke, the coach who brought Lucas to Newark.
“That was definitely shocking,” Lucas said. “With the surgery, I was thinking that perhaps I might have to sit out the year and not play at all. When Coach Clarke was no longer there, it was tough, because we were pretty close.”
Clarke’s replacement, Kristen Hunt, is relatively young and not too far removed from a college athlete, having graduated from Wheaton College in Massachusetts just five years ago.
“She’s not that much younger than me and the other girls all see that,” Hunt said. “So when I came to Newark, Kelsey was very important to me.”
Hunt wanted to pick Lucas’ brain about the program.
“She’s been here for a while and knows Rutgers-Newark softball very well,” Hunt said. “She’s a great liaison between the rest of the team and me. She comes to me with ideas all the time, so she’s helped the transition become a lot easier for me.”
Lucas said that there was an instant bond between her and the new coach.
“We get along great,” Lucas said. “She’s intense, which I like. She understands where I’m coming from and makes it easier for me.”
But Hunt had an idea that Lucas didn’t exactly get overly excited about.
“We needed a shortstop,” Hunt said. “Kelsey was going to have to be our shortstop. So we moved her from centerfield to shortstop. She had the most experience on the team. I knew she could do it. We needed her in that position for a lot of reasons. She communicates with her teammates and they listen to her. With a new team and a new coach, we needed to establish a new culture. She had to influence the younger kids right away and needed her in the most influential position.”
There was only one problem.
“I hate playing shortstop,” Lucas said. “Every coach I’ve ever had knows that. But I had to do it. I had to do what was best for the team. I give Coach Hunt credit for having faith in me. At shortstop, there’s a lot more going on and a lot more pressure.”
Hunt did have a lot of faith in Lucas, who has played second base, catcher and centerfield during her tenure with the Scarlet Raiders.
“She’s everyone’s role model,” Hunt said. “It’s good to have someone like Kelsey to be the role model. She’s the most respectful person and cares so much for everyone else. She worries about the little things, like what the team is going to wear for practice. She’ll have it all set for practice and that makes my job so much easier.”
Added Hunt, “When it comes time to focus on the game, she handles that as well. She knows it’s my first year and there’s a lot going on. She’s the shortstop, the quarterback of our defense.”
Lucas wasn’t worried about the shoulder. Hunt had some concerns.
“She worked really hard to come back from the surgery,” Hunt said. “She fought back, that’s for sure.”
Just like Lucas did her entire career at R-N – ever since she arrived from Hunterdon Central High School four years ago.
“I felt bad for her,” Hunt said. “She really never got a chance to play for a winner here. She influences everyone. She has the best softball instincts on the team and carries herself very well.”
Hunt put Lucas in the second spot in the Scarlet Raiders’ lineup.
“She’s like having a second leadoff hitter,” Hunt said. “She hits the ball real well and always has productive at-bats.”
Lucas is hitting .242 with three homers and 16 RBI. She’s tied with Kelly Yusko for the team lead in homers, is second on the team with the 16 RBI and leads the Scarlet Raiders with four triples.
More importantly, the Scarlet Raiders own a 14-16 record, easily the best mark this late in the season in ages.
Needless to say, it has been a joyous season for Lucas and the Scarlet Raiders.
“In the beginning, I was really leery of what might happen,” Lucas said. “I thought it might be a long season. I hated the position I was playing and it looked like we were going to be losing again. But we really turned it around. It’s been great.”
“If Kelsey’s down, then it’s not a good day,” Hunt said. “She has such a lively personality. She’s talking all the time. She gets everyone going.”
Lucas is a criminal justice major at R-N. She plans on getting a job in law enforcement, possibly as a police officer.
“I’m going to start off trying to become a police officer,” Lucas said. “It all depends on where I get hired.”
Needless to say, it’s been a wild roller coaster ride for Lucas at R-N, but one she will always cherish.
“It’s really going to be tough when the season’s over,” Lucas said. “I’m going to miss it. I got a great education here at Rutgers. It’s a great diploma.”
And Kelsey Lucas has been a great Scarlet Raider, one to cherish for the ages.
