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Gator catches plenty of kudos

Kim Hensley earns favorable comparisons with the best catchers in the county, from behind the plate and in the batter's box.

By STEVE LEE
Published March 16, 2005

LAND O'LAKES - She earned a spot behind the plate as a freshman and is in her third season as a starter.

And with Mitchell's Alicia Neelen and Zephyrhills' Caryn Allison - a Division I prospect, said Zephyrhills coach Craig Milburn - considered the county's best catchers in the west and east, respectively, she can get lost in the middle.

The Gators have their own opinion. They think they have the best of the bunch in Kim Hensley.

"You're looking at a kid who doesn't seek any notoriety," Land O'Lakes coach Jamie Martin said. "But she's the most consistent player we have, on offense and defense."

"I think she's a great ballplayer," added pitcher Rhiannon Bogaert. "I think she's awesome in hitting. Catching, she knows how to block the ball in the dirt. She knows how to frame pitches, too."

River Ridge coach Ernie Beck has not seen as much of Allison as he has of Hensley and Neelen, especially since the Knights play in the same district as Land O'Lakes and Mitchell. From what he has seen, Beck ranks Hensley among the county's best.

"She has to be up there on my list, because we haven't run too much on her," Beck said.

Hensley, Bogaert and shortstop Jessica Tejas have been mainstays in Land O'Lakes' starting lineup since a preseason tournament when they were freshmen.

Primarily a catcher and third baseman coming up through the Land O'Lakes Little League and with the Tampa Mustangs travel teams, Hensley initially played second base in that tournament. But starting catcher Gina Schiffer, a senior at the time, got hurt and was replaced by Hensley.

"I just filled in for (Schiffer) and she never got back," Hensley said. "She quit that year, because she wasn't playing.

"Yeah, she hates me."

Hensley is batting fourth for the second straight year and leads the Gators in batting (.519) and RBIs (13). She also has four doubles and is among just four county players with a home run.

"I love hitting fourth," Hensley said. "I like the pressure."

Hensley has hit well since her first season, when she drove in 16 and hit three triples. Last season, she batted .347 with five doubles, three triples and 19 RBIs.

While some may have been surprised at Hensley's early success, she surely isn't.

"When I first came up (to the high school level) I thought everyone was going to be so much better than me," Hensley said, adding that playing travel ball since she was 11 "helped. It's so intense."

Martin is the third Land O'Lakes coach in three seasons, which has led Hensley to make adjustments behind the plate every season she has played high school ball. Like Jerry English, who retired in 2003 after 27 seasons, Martin calls pitches. Mark Rulison, who coached last season, allowed Hensley to call pitches.

"It takes a lot of stress off her," Martin said.

Hensley has no qualms relaying Martin's calls to Bogaert, the Gators ace. "Sometimes I feel like I know more, because I see where the batter's standing, but I pretty much agree with (Martin)," she said.

Martin does let Hensley call pitches time to time, which is fine with Bogaert.

"Last year Kim called a lot of games, and she did a really good job," Bogaert said. "She knows how to call them."

Hensley espoused mutual respect for Bogaert.

"I love Rhiannon's pitching," Hensley said. "I always know where her balls are going to go. She's a junk pitcher. She has those curve balls that move four inches. After catching so many I know where they're going to be."

[Last modified March 16, 2005, 01:32:17]