Softball player of year: Davis fans the flame at Galena

Spencer Patterson

Friday, June 5, 1998 | 11:17 a.m.

Whether it's baseball or softball, Little League or major league, it doesn't get any better for a pitcher than a strikeout.

Just don't tell that to Galena High School junior Kourtney Davis.

Because for Davis, a self-described perfectionist, sometimes a strikeout just isn't good enough.

"It can be a strikeout, but if I feel like my pitch didn't do what I wanted it to, I get mad at myself," said Davis, the Sun's 1998 Softball Player of the Year.

So it's no surprise that Davis spends most of her time trying to improve on skills that helped the Grizzlies' ace post a 27-7 record and remarkable 0.27 ERA in the talent-rich Northern Zone this spring.

"She's a perfectionist, and it shows," Galena coach Teresa Burrows said. "She has great control and she throws around 63 miles-per-hour, right at college level. But she's never satisfied."

Above all, Davis is unsatisfied with the way her club's season ended last month.

After capturing 4A state titles in 1996 and '97, the Grizzlies failed to reach the championship game this year, losing to Reed and Bonanza to get bounced from the state tournament.

And Davis says that experience will give her added incentive as she prepares for her senior year and a final playoff run.

"Not going to the state championship, we have a lot more to work for," Davis said. "This year, we had a big target on our backs. Next year, being the underdog is probably where I'd rather be."

Of course, any team with the state's top pitcher on the mound isn't likely to be considered much of an underdog. With a top-notch dropball, a nearly untouchable riseball and two different change-ups at her disposal, Davis struck out 357 batters in 230 innings this spring.

"You've got to be able to move the ball around so they can't get their timing, and from her freshman year to this year she's learned how to do that," Burrows said. "And she handles pressure situations well."

Not surprisingly, Davis has gotten her fair share of attention from Division I college. She says she has her sights set on a school "somewhere warm and close to home."

But for now, she's got a bit of unfinished business in the form of next year's state title run. And this time, it's safe to say she won't settle for a less than perfect result.

"This year, we felt like we had something to live up to," Davis said. "Next year, we'll have nothing to lose."