A batting cage in the back yard doesn’t necessarily mean it’s softball all day and night in the Hutchinson household.
For Gloucester Catholic High School sophomore Maya Hutchinson and her father, most of the softball talk gets parked at the door after practices and games, despite their passion for the sport.
“We like talking about some things with softball, but it doesn’t dominate the conversation whatsoever,” said Mark Hutchinson, who took over as head coach of Gloucester Catholic’s softball program last season. “We kind of shut it off.”
The sport runs deep in the Hutchinson family, as Mark Hutchinson has been a longtime youth and travel softball coach while his two daughters, Maya and Lucea, have starred at Gloucester Catholic. Maya, who is now a sophomore, has become one of the best players in South Jersey, while Lucea continued her career at Rutgers University-Camden, where she just completed her junior year.
Hutchinson didn’t have the chance to coach Lucea’s high school team, but he’s enjoying a front row seat to watch Maya as he took the Gloucester Catholic job prior to her freshman year. Maya said there’s really no added pressure with dad calling the shots.
“I like him being the coach,’’ she said. “I think it’s fun.”
After hitting .409 as a freshman, Maya has found another level, batting .551 through her first 20 games this season, which included an 18-game hitting streak. She began playing softball at age 4 under the watchful eye of her dad, while following the footsteps of her older sister.
“I learned from my dad and from watching my older sister,” Maya said. “She’s been a good role model.”
Lucea had a pandemic-shortened high school career but batted .423 her senior season. At Rutgers-Camden, she started all 103 of the Scarlet Raptors’ games at third base over the last three years.
Maya has already passed her sister’s career hit mark – 57 in three years – as she had accumulated 65 prior to the Rams’ playoff run. “It’s been a lot of fun,” she said. “I’m seeing the ball better, and I made a bunch of adjustments.”
At home, Hutchinson sometimes has to wear two hats. Coach Hutchinson is there for when Maya needs help with her swing. There’s a loving dad around for everything else. The latter gets used more frequently.
“It’s funny, we have a batting cage in the back yard, and we practice a lot, but we also try to shut it down for the most part,” he said. “You’re not going to really fix anything at the dinner table.”
Sometimes, as a coach and father of a player on the team, difficult choices must be made about playing time and position preference. It’s never been a problem for Hutchinson, as it’s easy to see Maya’s work ethic from an outsider’s point of view.
“Yes, my kid is playing shortstop, but it’s well-deserved,” Hutchinson said. “She works as hard as anyone outside of practices and games. I’m proud of her.”
Every one of Maya’s hits has been needed this season, as the Rams have had a topsy-turvy season due to a slew of injuries. They managed a 10-10 record, but could have a tough time following up last year’s successful run to an appearance in the Non-Public B championship game. Regardless of the results, the coaching staff has vowed to make it a learning experience for all involved. “There are losses where we are proud of ourselves, and there are some 10-0 wins where we actually played awful,” Mark Hutchinson said. “The losses show we have a tough bunch of kids here and that we don’t give up. We battle. We’re not smelling a state championship this year, but we’ll fight until the last pitch and that’s all you can ask for.”
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