Eastside senior will extend career at Andrews College

Kacie Fincher didn’t have a boatload of shiny stats to show off to college recruiters during her senior season. But the one thing she did have secured her place as a future college softball player – her reputation.

Whenever Fincher signs her letter of intent to play softball at Andrew College, it’ll be because of her penchant for hard work that caused others to take notice.

The Eastside Eagles first baseman and pitcher didn’t see as much action on the field for the 2016 Region 4-AAAA champions as she perhaps would have liked. But her overall body of work was impressive enough that it made one of her coaches spread the word.

“My pitching coach knows the coach down at Andrew, so she was just in communication with her,” Fincher said. “She told her I was a hard worker and that I enjoyed playing softball and that she would love for her to take time to look at me.”

So she did. Fincher went to the Cuthbert, GA school and worked out in front of Andrew coach Kayla Williams, and apparently Williams liked what she saw to the point of making her intentions with Fincher immediately known.

“At first, she had me pitching with one of her catchers, and then I took a little defense,” Fincher said. “I went and hit, then I went and took a tour of the campus. She offered me right on the spot.”

And although Fincher said she took a couple of weeks to mull it over, she knew it was an opportunity too good for her to pass up.

“I’ve always wanted to play softball at the college level,” Fincher said. “When I was younger, I’d always go to the Georgia (Bulldogs) softball games and I was always wanting to be one of the girls on the softball field.”

Fincher said she tried a few alternatives before finding a home on the softball diamond, and more specifically, in the pitching circle.

“I tried cheerleading for a while, and that didn’t work,” she said. “And then I tried soccer, but that didn’t work either. When I tried softball, it was just something I loved. And my dad was one of my coaches, and he worked with me. I started pitching when I was 10, and I liked it because I just like being in control of what happens. When I’m pitching, I’m the beginning of a play, and the end of a play.”

In 2016, Fincher maintained a .381 batting average and knocked nine RBIs. She surmised that she didn’t see a ton of pitching time this season because of Eastside’s depth. And though she would’ve liked to have had more field time, the opportunity for a fresh start on the collegiate level helped ease some of those frustrations.

“I guess it was just because we had so many first basemen and so many pitchers that the coaches thought it would be better for them to be out there more,” she said. “But getting the offer from Andrew did make up for it. It just made me feel good that somebody thought I was good enough to play ball for them in college.”

Fincher said she also considered Gordon College, but the size and family feel at Andrew was the best fit for her.

“It’s a very small campus, and not a lot of people,” she said. “And they really make sure you attend class and that you’ve kept up on your classwork. They stress school first and sports second.”

Now, with her high school career behind her and a softball scholarship in her hand, Fincher simply wants to focus on taking her game to the next level.

“Since my freshman year of high school I think I’ve just gotten more determined to improve on my skills and get to this college level,” she said. “Now it’s just about me being confident in myself and believing in myself and knowing I can play and that I’ll have my team behind me. I’m proud of myself. It’s good to see that my hard work has finally paid off.”