Ava Drehs often dodged opportunities to try different sports when she was a kid.
The Neuqua Valley junior said her family had one rule — always play a sport — but finding one she liked wasn’t easy.
“With basketball, I would go cry in the corner, and in soccer I just sat in the goalie (area) and cried,” she said. “With ballet, I sat on the side of the stage and refused to dance.
“Softball was the only one that I gave a shot. I fell in love with it when I started pitching. I knew that this is what I was meant to do.”
But Ava Drehs didn’t merely stick with softball. Her development into a Division I recruit has astonished her father, Wayne, who covered nearly every major professional and college sporting event during an illustrious 23-year writing career at ESPN.
“Now there’s no place she would rather be in her life than standing in the circle with the ball in her hand,” Wayne Drehs said. “It’s crazy that the kid who was so scared and nervous — and scared of her own shadow — has no problem throwing a ball 60 miles per hour.”
Indeed, Ava Drehs has transformed herself into an elite pitcher. After a solid freshman season, the Creighton commit went 7-5 with a 2.68 ERA while striking out 143 and walking 33 in 96 innings last year.
She has been even harder to hit so far this season. She is 2-3 with a 1.04 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 27 innings for the Wildcats (3-6, 2-1).
“Ava has come a long way in the past three years, but she started off very strong, even as a freshman pitcher,” Neuqua Valley coach Danielle Asquini said. “Ava has gained strength through her physical training, and that has led to improvements in her pitching.”
Ava Drehs mixes six pitches — a fastball, a screwball, a curveball, a change-up, a riseball and a dropball — and her fastball has topped out at 66 mph.
“Ava is a special pitcher,” Asquini said. “She is commanding in the circle and pitches with confidence. Ava is smart and knows that pitch location, speed and spin are all important for success.”
Ava Drehs, who struck out 12 during the Wildcats’ 8-1 DuPage Valley Conference win against Naperville North on Monday, is confident in part because she feels at home while pitching.
“When the coach hands me the ball at the beginning of the game, just being in the circle is the calmest place in the world,” she said. “I found a sense of comfort in that. Even in scary situations in games, I’m still comfortable and calm.”
Neuqua Valley’s Izzy Ernest, left, encourages pitcher Ava Drehs, right, during a DuPage Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinal against Waubonsie Valley in Naperville on Monday, May 15, 2023. (Jon Cunningham / Naperville Sun)
Ava Drehs said she didn’t always fully grasp her father’s journalism job, which included various print and television assignments. Wayne Drehs, who has won Sports Emmy Awards and teaches sports journalism at Iowa, wrote in-depth feature stories for ESPN’s website and ESPN The Magazine.
“It was when people at school would tell me they saw my dad on TV, then I’m like, ‘Oh crap, I didn’t realize that wasn’t normal,’” Ava Drehs said. “He would also be gone for weeks. But we bonded over softball. He was my coach for 10 years. He drove me to nearly every game and practice. He’s like my rock, my best friend.”
Ava Drehs said her father’s experiences have taught her several lessons that have helped her.
“He would come home from these amazing trips, where he would be living with these athletes for a week and seeing them practice,” she said. “He taught me that people have no idea how much they are practicing, like Michael Phelps or Michael Jordan. They would always be working to get better.”
Ava Drehs said once she realized she loved softball, she wanted to follow in her father’s footsteps.
“He saw a side of sports most people don’t get to see,” she said. “He had the inside on it. I knew if I wanted to be successful, I had to keep working. I used to have a big friend group, but I’ve dedicated my time to softball. To me, that’s the most important thing.
“Just watching him do what he loves and enjoying it, I wanted to be like him. He was constantly traveling, and writing was his passion. So when I found my passion in pitching, I jumped headfirst into it to be as good as him.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.
