Dunnellon’s Fagan Stepped into Starting Role for UF

After leading her Dunnellon High School team to back-to-back state Class 4A championships, 2010 Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Softball winner Kasey Fagan stepped into a starting role for the University of Florida and more than held her own on the biggest stage of all.

Fagan started 68 of 69 games as a true freshman at third base for head coach Tim Walton’s Gators, who went on finish as the 2011 NCAA Championship runners-up.  It marked the second time in the past three seasons the UF softball team, which became the first Southeastern Conference program to reach the Women’s College World Series four straight years, has advanced to the national championship final.

“The adjustment was hard because you’re going from the high school level and being the best on your team to college where everyone was the best on their team,” Fagan said. “Now you’re just one of many stars, so that was difficult to adjust to. Then playing in the games, especially in SEC, there are so many people watching you and there are televised games. It’s just a whole new atmosphere of pressure and expectations. You just have to develop the kind of attitude to get you through that.”

Kasey, primarily a pitcher in high school, led the Tigers to a 33-1 finish as a prep senior, amassing a 26-1 record in the circle. She pitched three no-hitters and allowed only 56 hits over 127 innings while adding a .574 batting average with eight home runs, 13 doubles and 61 RBIs and a .989 slugging percentage.  As a junior, she finished runner-up in the Miss Softball balloting.

Although Fagan finished her first collegiate season batting just .247 with six doubles, five home runs and 22 RBIs for the 56-13 Gators, she ranked second on the team in stolen bases (16 in 19 attempts), sixth in runs scored (43) and seventh in hits (41) while playing solid defensively, committing just five errors — the lowest mark of any of UF’s four infield starters.

All part of the tough adjustments that have to be made when transitioning from high school to the Division I level.

“I made adjustments from high school to college, but I didn’t make adjustments throughout the season,” she said. “I kept letting the same pitch beat me over and over again, or I let the same situation beat me. I didn’t make adjustments as a hitter or as a fielder. I was kind of disappointed in myself with that. But your freshman year is all about growing.”

Fagan and shortstop Cheyenne Coyle are the lone returning starters in the infield for UF. Last year, those two freshmen comprised the left side of the Gator infield, with seniors Aja Paculba and Megan Bush holding down the right side at second base and first base, respectively.

Now sophomores, Fagan and Coyle are UF’s most experienced infielders heading into the 2012 season.

“I feel pretty confident,” Fagan said. “I mean, 68 games, that’s a lot of experience, especially playing at the high level we’re playing at. Being in the World Series, there were like totally new pressure situations and stuff like that, and now we know what that is like. I think we’ll be able to handle things a lot better this year and also will be able to help the freshmen and new players stay calm.”

Fagan also has another reason to smile. Joining her in a Gator uniform this year will be younger sister Sami Fagan, the 2011 Class 4A Player of the Year.

“It’s going to be great. I’m really excited,” Kasey said. “I’m glad she’s here. She really pushes me and helps me get better.

“In high school, we pretty much spent every waking moment together. We lifted together, practiced together, and of course we lived together.”

In fact, the Fagans have quite a softball family tree. Kevin Fagan, the father, was the 2009 and 2010 Florida Dairy Farmers Softball Coach of the Year, and his youngest daughter, Haley, who is a senior at Dunnellon this season, has signed with the University of South Alabama.

“He was definitely way tougher on me and my sisters,” Kasey said. “Without his guidance and structure, though, I would never be the player I am today. He’s just so knowledgeable about the game, like what kind of workouts I should do speed-wise and lift-wise. He’s definitely helped all three of us get to where we’re at.”

Fagan said last season’s WCWS experience was truly special.

“Actually I felt like going there, I thought it was going to be a once in a lifetime experience,” she said. “But I didn’t realize how I would feel when I stepped on the field. I thought it would be just another game, but when I actually got on the field and saw all those people in such a big stadium and played against the best teams in the country, it was something I will never forget.”

This is the first of 12 monthly features on past Florida Dairy Farmers High School Sports Awards winners in celebration of the program’s 20th anniversary.

This unique program exemplifies Florida Dairy Farmers’ commitment to the state’s youth and this year will honor the state’s top athletes and coaches in an all-time high 30 FHSAA sanctioned and recognized sports categories. The program also emphasizes to young people the importance of keeping dairy products a primary part of their diet in their overall nutrition plan.