Acclaimed Frosh Steps Up to First

With the sudden departure of superstar junior Lauren Murphy, Harvard softball not only lost its starting first baseman, but also the team’s biggest power hitter.

Though filling the shoes of such a player—who ranks first in Crimson history in career slugging percentage at .680 and helped lead the team to the Ivy League championship tournament final last season—would seem to be a tall order for any team, Harvard has already found a worthy replacement.

Enter freshman Whitney Shaw.

The rookie has stepped seamlessly into the role of starting first baseman, already sporting a .976 fielding percentage with 77 putouts on the season.
Even more impressive have been Shaw’s statistics at bat. She leads the team in batting average at .317 and on base percentage at .474.

Furthermore, with a slugging percentage of .439, the rookie is second only to co-captain Hayley Bock. Just last week she tallied her first collegiate home run against Bryant.

“[Shaw’s] really stepped up into the role of first base and is doing a great job,” Bock said. “She just has so much power behind her swing. There’s just so much power that she’s really intimidating pitchers. It’s really exciting to see that in a freshman.”

However, commanding an intimidating presence at the plate is no new feat for the San Francisco, Calif. native. Starting in the third grade and playing year-round in the Golden State ever since has given Shaw plenty of preparation for her first season in the Ivy League.

And Shaw didn’t just play softball in high school, she excelled—garnering just about every possible accolade a prep school player could achieve. She was named Rookie of the Year her freshman season, MVP her sophomore year and finally team captain her senior spring, leading her squad to an undefeated record and NCS division title.

“Coming from California, we have the ability to play year round,” Shaw said. “I really enjoyed it and when I had the opportunity to do it in college, I thought why not? I enjoyed the people around me and had a good time.”

For Shaw, playing college ball at Harvard was the natural choice. The prospect of enjoying high-level academics while also contributing to an already strong softball program was too good of an opportunity to pass up.

“I really love the team dynamic and how people are able to balance academics and schoolwork while playing a sport at a high level,” Shaw said. “I knew we did well in league and we always had the potential to do more.”

Since she arrived in Cambridge, Shaw has certainly made clear the impact that she can have on the Crimson squad by winning a starting position early on in her rookie season.

The first-year made her first collegiate start at the Miken Classic in Boca Raton, Fla. early this March and has been the consistent presence at first base ever since the Highlander Classic played over spring break.

“It means a lot [to start],” Shaw said. “Coming out, one of my biggest goals was to earn that position.”

Though Shaw primarily played at third in high school, the rookie was more than ready to step up to the job of first baseman when the opportunity arose.

“I’ve always practicing there so I was more than ready to step up for the challenge and I knew that Coach needed me and the team needed me,” Shaw said. “I had played first base before so it wasn’t like it was completely foreign to me.”

Shaw has also found her way into the top of the batting lineup. While acting primarily as a designated hitter in the first games of the season, she has since secured herself as No. 3 in the rotation with 41 appearances at bat and 10 RBI on the season.

“I’ve always been a power hitter more so than a flapper,” Shaw said. “I’m definitely comfortable in one of the 3-4-5 positions.”

The Crimson will certainly rely on Shaw’s versatility this season as it looks to take back the Ivy crown. The team is off to a strong start after sweeping Penn and splitting with Columbia this weekend, but it will look to Shaw to contribute to the energy and intensity needed for the rest of the season.

“With the team, coming out with the same passion for every game will be key for us and always play above our competition,” Shaw said. “The Ivy games all have so much emotion in them because they all mean something.”

—Staff writer Lucy D. Chen can be reached at lucychen@fas.harvard.edu.