As Highland’s players and coaches circled up, Mia Rivera offered a few emotional words of congratulations and encouragement.
That post-game scene Tuesday provided a glimpse of the type of teammate the senior pitcher is striving to be for the Trojans this season.
“I just want to be a good leader to the team and just make sure they look up to me and help them out,” Rivera said. “Hit when I need to hit, pitch when I need to pitch.”
Rivera checked all of those boxes as visiting Highland upended Andrean 3-2 in a Northwest Crossroads Conference game on the road in Merrillville on Tuesday.
She allowed two runs on six hits with five strikeouts and no walks, giving up just leadoff homers to sophomore Micah Snider in the fifth and seventh innings. Outdueling Andrean junior ace Abbey Bond, Rivera also went 4-for-4 with two runs and a stolen base as the Trojans (8-4, 1-3) notched their first conference win by handing the 59ers (9-5, 3-1), ranked No. 3 in the Class 2A state coaches poll, their first conference loss.
Rivera’s performance didn’t surprise senior shortstop Sarah Swallow, who went 2-for-2 with a run and an RBI. Swallow also made a leaping catch for the first out of the sixth as part of the Trojans’ outstanding defense that included right fielder Payton Reid‘s diving catch to end the fourth.
“I’ve been playing with her since we were like 7, 8,” Swallow said of Rivera. “Since then, she’s doing phenomenal this season. The best I’ve ever seen her play, no offense. The best I’ve ever seen her play. She just keeps rolling the ball for us. She just keeps us going.”
Rivera, who plays left field when she’s not pitching, has been putting together the kind of season she envisioned. She’s 4-1 with a 1.98 ERA in her second season as Highland’s No. 1 pitcher. She has 43 strikeouts and just seven walks in 42 ? innings. She’s also hitting .556.
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Last season, Rivera went 1-8 with a 3.52 ERA and hit .429 with 14 stolen bases. She debuted as a sophomore, going 3-5 with a 2.94 ERA and hitting .446, after her freshman season was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Me and Sarah just found out we made varsity, and COVID shut down everything,” Rivera said. “That just made us work harder.”
Rivera has drawn extra motivation this season from her sister Evie, a freshman who went 1-for-3 with a stolen base against the 59ers.
“I just feel like this high school season, especially playing with my little sister, I just wanted to be the person everyone looks up to in a game,” Rivera said. “I make sure to hold myself accountable, just being in it more mentally.”
Rivera said she wanted to follow the example set by the seniors last year. In particular, catcher Angelica Castillo influenced her.
“Jelly always stood out to me,” Rivera said. “This year, I wanted to become her. She was very positive. All the girls loved her and got along with her and looked up to her. This year, I wanted to step into that role and help out in any way.”
It hasn’t taken long for Rivera to make an impression on first-year Highland coach Harry Humyak, who also spent two seasons as an assistant at Andrean.
“She’s one heck of a competitor,” Humyak said. “There is nobody on this team outside of her that feels what she feels from a passion standpoint. She is always at like a 9 1/2 out of 10 from an energy standpoint.
“She’s just a competitor. She wants to win no matter what the score is. She wants to win at everything she does in life. You look up ‘competitor’ in the dictionary, and you’re going to find Mia Rivera.”
That passion from Rivera, who credited her father, Dave, for instilling that drive, has been factoring into her college decision. She has been deciding between St. Mary’s, where she would continue her playing career, and Florida Gulf Coast, with her grandparents and aunt living in that state. Rivera, who plans to study nursing, said she’s leaning toward the college in Notre Dame.
“I love the game of softball,” she said. “And I’m falling in love with it even more this year.”
The Trojans, who moved down to Class 3A this season and are scheduled to host a sectional, have nearly matched their nine wins from last season after losing three of their previous four games.
“We were at our lowest,” Rivera said. “We were at our lowest, but we’re growing stronger as a team. That game was huge for us. It was amazing all around. Everybody contributed, made great plays, and our chemistry is just phenomenal. This team definitely is, by far, my favorite team I’ve ever played on. I just love all the girls, and we just trust each other.”