Softball: Sarah Davenport’s path to 1,000 Ks with Hillsborough began in obscurity

Sarah Davenport began her high school softball career as a virtual unknown. Just over three years later, she’s entering the home stretch of a career no one will soon forget.

Thursday, she made sure of that, becoming just the 21st pitcher in New Jersey softball history to reach 1,000 career strikeouts, and, it is widely believed, the first ever to do it in just three seasons.

There was no hype, buzz or whispers when the then-sophomore took the circle at Montgomery for her first varsity game for Hillsborough, opening day in 2021. Especially after she took a loss, despite allowing just two runs on nine hits, fanning 11, as the Cougars claimed a walkoff win in the bottom of the seventh. And there were even fewer expectations when the preseason began.

There is normally talk and anticipation for a talent like Davenport’s. But after losing her freshman campaign to the COVID-19 shutdown, and then beginning her career a year later without a shred of buzz, she quickly established herself as one of the best to ever wear the Raiders’ colors – and now, among the best to ever pitch in the Garden State.

She needed 15 strikeouts against Kingsway on Thursday to reach the milestone – a number she had reached in 11 of 22 starts this year coming into that game. She recorded No. 1,000 with one out in the sixth inning of a 2-0 Hillsborough win, finishing the contest fanning 18.

She now has 341 Ks in 153 innings this season, already a career single-season high with up to six games left to go.

“It’s still kind of surreal right now, but I’m very proud of myself for being able to reach it,” Davenport said. “Back as a sophomore, I barely knew if I’d make varsity, let alone get 1,000 strikeouts, so I’m very proud of how far I’ve been able to come.”

“The first time I saw her pitch, I knew she was going to be special. Did I know she was going to be this special? No,” said Hillsborough’s NJ Coaches Association Hall of Fame skipper Cheryl Iaione, who is being inducted into the Hillsborough HOF this weekend, and has seen a great pitcher or two come through during her 29 years at the helm.

“She threw hard, she could spin the ball, she was confident, and she had great control. But I think the most amazing thing about her, is that she can be 2-0, 3-1, even 3-0, but she never waivers. I don’t even worry about that. I’ve had pitchers that when they get behind in the count, forget it, it’s going to be a walk, or they’re going to groove a pitch, but that’s not Sarah.”

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Through Thursday, Davenport improved her record to 21-2 for the season with a 0.23 ERA, allowing just five earned runs all year on 42 hits and 16 walks in 153 innings. And 341 strikeouts. Only one team this year – Watchung Hills in the county final – was able to limit Davenport to fewer than 11 strikeouts in a game (she had seven). In fact, she’s had just five games during her career where she’s fanned fewer than 10 in a game, with one of those coming in a mercy rule-shortened five-inning contest.

She’s 60-11 for her career with a 0.08 ERA, allowing just 21 earned runs and 52 walks, while fanning 1,003 in 471 1/3 innings.

“There’re some really great pitchers across the state – we faced many of them this year, ourselves – but what separates Sarah, I think, is her consistency on a daily basis,” Iaione said. “Teams haven’t really had more than four hits in a game (it happened once this year, opening day, when Watchung Hills posted six hits). And there are very few times in her career where she’s had less than 10 strikeouts.”

“I give her so much credit. She’s such an amazing pitcher,” said Watchung Hills senior ace and frequent Davenport duel mate Jules Raymond, after Watchung Hills edged Hillsboro in last week’s Somerset County final. “Sometimes, I go (online) and look at her stats, and I think this has to be a typo. There’s just no way she’s doing this. She’s so good.”

Davenport has also led Hillsborough to three conference titles in three years, a county crown and a state sectional championship, coming within an extra-innings error of the program’s first state title. She hopes to remedy that this spring.

“I always try and do what I can for my team, no matter how many strikeouts,” said Davenport, whose elderly grandparents were in attendance Thursday, including her grandfather, who came out of the hospital just to be there. “So, I just focus on the game we’re playing and my pitches and will benefit the team. Obviously, 1,000 is always in the back of your mind, but the team always comes first. Getting 1,000 is amazing, but it’s part of the journey, and now we move on to the next step and the next game.

“That’s always the goal, to win as many games as you can and help your team go as far as you can. We’ve had such a great season so far that no matter what the results end up being, I’m always going to be forever grateful to this team and proud of them – in all three years.”

Staff writer Simeon Pincus has been covering NJ sports since 1997, and has been on the softball beat since 1999. He can be reached at CourierSoftball@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @SimeonPincus

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ softball: Sarah Davenport passes 1,000 career strikeouts