Lila Miller has been entrenched as Chesterton’s shortstop for four seasons, but she hasn’t rested on her laurels.
Miller changed travel teams heading into her final high school season, and the move was a springboard for the Purdue Northwest commit.
“I’ve definitely worked a lot on my agility and charging the ball,” she said. “Beforehand, I hadn’t really played on highly competitive teams, and last year I joined a team from Indianapolis, and they played the best of the best over the summer. It was kind of a reality check that I needed to be faster. I needed to work on what I could to beat my opponents. They were getting better, so I needed to get better along with them. Otherwise, I was going to fall behind.
“So I worked a lot on my speed and agility, reaction to the ball, also charging it and not doubting myself in that area. And with hitting, I’ve definitely worked a lot on weighted things and getting my exit velocity up. That’s helped too.”
After Chesterton (5-3, 5-2) notched three Duneland Athletic Conference victories in as many days in the past week, Miller was hitting .333 with two homers, a team-high three doubles, nine RBIs and a team-high 14 runs scored.
Miller had led the Trojans with 10 doubles and 20 RBIs as a sophomore, but she suffered a broken bone in her left foot on a slide during a preseason practice in her junior year and was sidelined for more than three months. She missed the season opener and then eased her way back into the lineup for about a week.
This season, Miller hit the ground running.
“Confidence is a big thing,” she said. “Just going up there, not caring about anybody else, like who the opponent is or what other people are saying. I just have to focus on being confident in myself and the work that I put in and the team backing me up and the coaches.
“It’s easy to get ahead of yourself or get down on yourself. But focusing on what you can control in a situation is all that you can do in this sport.”
Miller took control of her opportunity as a freshman. A door opened when then-senior incumbent Mariah Vagner graduated midyear, and Miller walked through it.
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“I wasn’t expecting to start,” Miller said. “The first game, the coach goes, ‘You’re leading off and playing shortstop,’ and I went, ‘Oh, OK.’ But I didn’t let the nerves get to me, and I trusted myself.”
Miller has earned the trust of second-year coach Erin Cochran, a 2001 Chesterton graduate.
“She’s one person that you can definitely know she’s going to be the leader out there,” Cochran said. “You can count on her 100% keeping the positivity out there with the girls, leading by example. If she makes a mistake, she knows she has to step it up a little bit too. She wants everyone to follow her, and she’s by far one of the best leaders that I’ve had.
“She’s a great kid, hard worker, very smart, all of that. I’m glad my daughter, she’s a freshman this year, likes to hang out with her too. She’s a person to look up to.”
Sophomore first baseman/pitcher Payton Cherep also appreciates what Miller contributes to the Trojans.
“Lila plays a big role offensively and defensively on our team,” Cherep said. “Her hard work and dedication shows in practices and games. Her leadership and energy elevates the entire team.”
Miller also participates in an assortment of other activities. The list includes competitive show choir, which she said “takes up the majority of the winter season”; an internship with the athletic trainers, which ties directly into her future plans; the Red Cross Club, for which she’s the vice president; and the Best Buddies program. She’s also a senior leader for the student section at football and basketball games, and she’s in the National Honor Society and the music honor society.
“It’s definitely something I’ve grown into,” Miller said. “I didn’t start my high school career with all of those clubs, but each year I add something on. I find it to be beneficial because I have to have the time management. It’s just where everything fits. You have to place it where the puzzle piece goes.”
Miller, who intends to study kinesiology at Purdue Northwest and go into sports medicine, has impressed Cochran with how she’s put those puzzle pieces together.
“I don’t know how she does it, honestly,” Cochran said. “She’s definitely involved in things. She’s able to keep her grades up. She’s in tough classes.”
Miller likes the direction the Trojans have been heading too. They’re aiming to build on the success of last season, when they won a sectional title for the first time since 2019.
“We’ve all grown so much since even the start of March,” Miller said. “We’re on the path to the best we’ve been in my four years, at least, and even before that too. Winning sectionals last year for the first time in six years was really exciting, and this year has the potential to be even better than that.
“I just want my teammates all to have the confidence in themselves and the work they put in, like what I’ve been trying to focus on for myself, because your biggest competition is always going to be your own mind. If you don’t believe in yourself, then you’ve already lost the battle. Believing in yourself is the first step to success in anything you do, not just softball.”