All sophomore Kelly Drozd could do was cheer her team on from the bench as NIU’s softball team snatched an extra-inning 2-1 victory from Minnesota on Feb. 12.

Drozd received her chance to start in the next four games, going 2-for-13 from the plate – and giving NIU coach Donna Martin little reason to start the second-year outfielder on a regular basis.

Regardless of what happened in the past, one more shot was all Drozd needed to prove herself.

In NIU’s next game against Wisconsin-Green Bay, she went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and one run scored, changing the aura surrounding her play. Drozd has gone on to become the Huskies’ most potent offensive weapon this season.

The Lockport native is leading the team with a .306 batting average, .368 on-base percentage, 14 runs scored, 26 hits and eight stolen bases.

“Kevin [Welch] and I didn’t have to do a lot with my mechanics,” Drozd said about the team’s hitting coach. “We worked a lot on situational hitting, where to hit when runners are on base and situational bunting.”

Drozd’s work on situational hitting became a factor against Eastern Michigan on Saturday and Sunday.

Tied at four in the bottom of the sixth inning in the first game of a doubleheader Saturday, Drozd laced a single to left field, knocking in the eventual game-winning run.

Another game-winning hit followed in the conclusion of Sunday’s rain-out that was finished on Monday. Drozd cracked a double over the center fielder’s head with two outs and the game tied at two in the bottom of the fourth inning. Both runners on base crossed home plate, becoming the eventual game-winning runs.

“Drozd has not been a surprise,” Martin said. “Every day she’s come in and gone to work.”

Last season, Drozd finished fourth on the team with a .274 batting average. Since the end of her 2-for-13 start, the leftfielder has recorded a .333 batting average, scored 12 runs and knocked in eight.

However, Drozd’s batting is not the only asset she brings to NIU’s offense. Bunting and speed on the basepaths have given Martin the flexibility to use Drozd in multiple positions in the batting order.

Drozd has hit either third or first in the lineup this year, and as leadoff hitters are known for their speed, Drozd has lived up to expectations. She stole a total of 10 bases last season and already has eight this season – the only Huskie this year to have more than two.

A stolen base in softball is different than that in baseball. Though the basepaths are only 60 feet long – 30 feet shorter than baseball – softball players aren’t allowed to lead off.

“I really worked on my conditioning and getting a good jump,” Drozd said. “I start off with one foot behind the bag, rock backward, and when the pitcher rocks backward, I go.”

Martin said the little things in softball, like having smart pitching, making smart decisions on the basepaths and bunting are what will allow the team to compete for the MAC championship.

Being the only NIU player to score over 10 runs and getting on base more than any other Huskie, Drozd said she has learned there’s a lot more to bunting than putting the bat on the ball.

“You need to know when to put the bunt down and where to place it on the infield,” Drozd said. “It depends on which defensive player is playing up or back on the infield.”