Ambrose is where the action is

Updated: April 25, 2011 6:24AM

Kaleigh Ambrose is pretty easy to locate on a softball field. She is the one doing everything.

The Lane star junior, who might be the city's most versatile performer, has the ability to dominate every facet of the game. As a pitcher she is 6-2 with a 2.13 ERA. Through the Indians' first 12 games, she is hitting .429, has a .535 on-base percentage and has blasted two home runs with 11 runs batted in.

She has started every game since her freshman year. As a sophomore, she hit .376 with eight home runs and 42 RBI.

The statistics only tell part of the story. She is not just the team's leader, but the energy source for the Red-North leaders who are off to 4-0 conference start that includes victories over top contenders Young and Northside.

Coach George Stavrakas has Ambrose leading off, not only maximizing her plate appearances, but igniting the offense.

"We've had some other Division I players the last four or five years, but her power is just remarkable," Stavrakas said. "Watching her when she gets a hold of a ball is something to see."

Against Lincoln Park, she led off by blasting a 300-foot home run that ignited a 16-0 victory.

"It's my job to get on base, and get the offense going,'' she said.

When not pitching, she plays shortstop, where she shows the quickness and range that served her well as a starting guard on the Indians' basketball team.

Pitching was something she naturally adapted to.

"I'm not an overwhelming pitcher as far as speed," Ambrose said. "I probably throw 57-58 [miles per hour], but I know how to get a lot of movement, like how to get the corners, and throw the change-up."

She gravitated to pitching, she said, because of the elemental showdown between pitcher and batter.

"As a pitcher you can control the game," Ambrose said.

Her versatility is a big reason for her superb offensive numbers.

"Because I'm a pitcher, too, I can usually see what the ball is doing when the other pitcher throws it to me," she said. "I can see the way the ball is spinning and that definitely gives me an advantage."

Ambrose grew up on the northwest side and was introduced to the game as an 8-year-old, when she played travel youth ball.

"I just fell in love with the game," she said. "I just love the competition, and the chance to make a really awesome play out there."

Stavrakas starts four freshmen, and Ambrose's manner and intensity has rubbed off, he said.

"I first knew about her when she was in seventh grade, and it was a foregone conclusion she was going to start as a freshman," Stavrakas said. "She was more deferential to the seniors when she first got here, and now she is the leader of the team."

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