ONE MORE TO GO: El Modena senior Kylie Wagner will try to win one more game for the Vanguards, but it's a big one: the CIF-SS Division II championship game on Friday against Glendora. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER |
El Modena's Wagner makes sure she's always in control
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The Vanguards ace knows how to handle stressful situations and opponents.
ORANGE El Modena's Kylie Wagner isn't talking to herself between pitches while she's in the circle.
It might look like she is at times, but she isn't. She's singing.
The senior has found it to be a relaxing way to calm down when things aren't going her way and when she is getting a little frustrated.
It must be working because the Vanguards are riding a 10-game unbeaten streak into the CIF-SS Division II championship game against Glendora on Friday (6:30 p.m.) at Bill Barber Park in Irvine.
So what song does she listen to as she is trying to calm her nerves? A ballad from one of the latest American Idol prospects? No. How about the soothing sounds of Yanni? Come on, please.
“I listen to loud, gangster music,” Wagner said. “The one song I listen to most is by Notorious B.I.G. ‘Big Poppa.' Believe it or not, I sing that when I'm out on the field when I'm pitching to calm me down. If I'm getting frustrated, I'll start singing that in my head.”
Wagner said she picked up the stress-relieving technique from the 2001 Keanu Reeves film “Hardball.” Biggie and Lil' Wayne are some of Wagner's and her teammates' favorite rap artists.
El Modena coach Steve Harrington credits pitching coach Jessica Foley, who played on El Modena's 2002 team that reached the Division III finals, for the leaps in Wagner's development.
Foley was a senior when Wagner was a freshman, and Foley said Wagner was pushing her for innings back then. Wagner has been El Modena's starter since her sophomore year.
“I really worked with her a lot on her confidence,” Foley said. “Even her freshman year, she didn't have the confidence. She didn't believe she was as good of a pitcher as she was. It really got me upset. She is an amazing pitcher. She threatened me my senior year.”
Foley's constant prodding and a late-season pep talk from Maureen LeCocq, a 1999 Gatorage Player of the Year for Harrington at Chaminade of West Hills, helped solidify Wagner's confidence and belief in herself.
“I finally realized now there is nothing that is going to stop me,” Wagner said.
Harrington has had great teams at El Modena, including squads that reached the Division III finals in 2001 and 2002. He said this team has the best blend of freshmen, veterans and chemistry of any of the teams he has coached.
Freshman infielder Devin Vanderhoff hit a game-winning homer in the bottom of the eighth to give the Vanguards a 4-3 victory over top-seeded Kennedy on Tuesday in the semifinals.
Wagner's younger sister, Haylie, is a freshman who has made a huge contribution for the Vanguards. She plays first base, backs up at pitcher and is a strong hitter.
“She doesn't know this, I haven't told her, but when I was pitching at the age of 10 and then I saw her pitch at the age of 10, she was a lot better than me,” Wagner said of her little sister.
“She is going to be better than me. I know it because she is bigger than me. She's seen me play and she knows what to expect. She is going to take over next year. I really want her to take my place and keep going with it.”
Contact the writer: carias@ocregister.com
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