A 'consistent mentality' propels FAMU softball's midseason surge as SWAC East frontrunners

Florida A&M softball is at a place where it has never been.

Twelve games and four series into their league schedule, the Rattlers are atop the Southwestern Athletic Conference’s East Division.

This season is FAMU’s third in the SWAC.

“The biggest thing is that we have a group of young ladies who get along and have each other’s best interest,” FAMU head coach Camise Patterson said.

“When we get in those tough times, they’re all locked in, keeping each other accountable and pushing each other to be better. During the first two years in the SWAC, our teams weren’t bonded enough with the glue that holds them together. But this team is cool with each other and love each other.

“It helps a lot.”

The Rattlers have not dropped a SWAC series this season.

In an Easter Weekend series, FAMU beat in-state rivals Bethune-Cookman 2-1 to become the outright SWAC East leaders.

After splitting the first two games, FAMU mounted a comeback on B-CU in the finale after trailing 2-0 entering the seventh and final inning.

The Rattlers knotted the game and then outscored B-CU 5-0 in the eighth to take a 7-2 extra-inning victory.

“This team does a great job of having a consistent mentality,” FAMU outfielder Nyomi Jones said. “We show up and attack the next day like nothing happened before. We’re not really outcome-based. We’re just working towards our goals.”

Though FAMU is on the SWAC East’s mountaintop, Patterson is keeping her team grounded.

The Rattlers (14-15, 10-2 SWAC) still have four series remaining before May’s SWAC Tournament, starting with the Alabama State Hornets (17-19, 7-5 SWAC) in a three-game home series.

The teams are scheduled to play one game Friday and a doubleheader Saturday.

“We’re still trending up and trying to reach that peak performance,” Patterson said. “Having some of those harder non-conference games gave the players confidence of having no fear.

“It’s that mentality of not being scared of anything.”

Fielding players with immediate impacts to winning fuels FAMU softball

Patterson, in her second year of head coaching FAMU softball, calls recruiting her favorite part of the job because of the connections made between players and families.

The FAMU coach’s efforts to land talented softball players with good character are paying off.

The Rattlers have one of the top pitchers in the SWAC, freshman Zoryana Hughes.

Hughes, from Lake City, is fifth in SWAC ERA with 2.28. Additionally, she holds an 8-2 record on the mound.

Hughes was named the SWAC's Co-Pitcher of the Week for going 2-0 with a 0.88 ERA at B-CU.

“It was a pretty easy transition,” Hughes said about elevating from high school to college.

Jones, a fifth-year Master’s student in Architecture, transferred to FAMU from Ole Miss.

The Long Beach, California native's migration from the west coast to the south was for a childhood dream of playing Southeastern Conference softball, which she achieved.

Now, Jones is marking another feat off her bucket list. She said she wanted to use her final season of eligibility at an HBCU.

Jones is fifth in the SWAC with a .377 batting average and eighth with 29 hits.

“I wanted to come in and make an impact. I felt like I could bring a lot to a team experience-wise,” Jones said of her time at FAMU. “It’s been great playing for Coach P. She gives me the freedom to play my game and settles me down when I try to do a little too much.”

FAMU softball to play on Veronica Wiggins Field for first time in nearly a month

The Rattlers are home for the first time since March 16.

FAMU usually has a fiery gameday environment as the bleachers sit directly behind the home plate and near the opposing dugout.

“We’ve been on the road for a while,” Hughes said. “Everybody’s just excited to have our family, friends, and professors finally come and see us play.”

FAMU is 5-3 at home this season. But, since dedicating the field to legendary Rattlers softball coach Veronica Wiggins, FAMU has won five of their last six home games.

However, FAMU’s success on its home turf is secondary to Patterson.

“My favorite thing is that I get to sleep in my own bed,” Patterson joked.

“Having the home-field advantage and the crowd having your back is always encouraging. Our crowd brings a lot of energy, and we feed off it. Knowing we have the community behind us will help us stay in that first place.”

FAMU baseball hosts Alabama State for a SWAC weekend series

FAMU fought against the Florida Gators, narrowly falling 10-7 in the midweek nonconference game in Gainesville last Tuesday.

Now, it’s back to the SWAC for the Rattlers.

FAMU (12-17, 7-2 SWAC) hosts Alabama State (13-13, 5-3 SWAC) in a three-game series at Moore-Kittles Field. The teams meet for a game per day from Friday to Sunday.

The Rattlers look to stay hot in the SWAC after sweeping Jackson State in last weekend’s Easter series.

FAMU Softball Weekend Schedule

Friday, April 5: vs. Alabama State at 5 p.m.

Saturday, April 6: vs. Alabama State at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

All games will be played at Veronica Wiggins Field on FAMU's campus.

FAMU Baseball Weekend Schedule

Friday, April 5: vs. Alabama State at 5 p.m.

Saturday, April 6: vs. Alabama State at 2 p.m.

Sunday, April 7: vs. Alabama State at 1 p.m.

All games will be played at Moore-Kittles Field on FAMU's campus.

Gerald Thomas, III covers Florida A&M University Athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU Softball: Rattlers off to best start since joining the SWAC