Wrapping the Fall with Marshall’s Morgan Zerkle

Photos courtesy Marshall Athletics

This is a great time to be a fan of the Marshall softball program. Or even better, a player for the Thundering Herd.

The Thundering Herd is coming off one of the best seasons in school history after posting a 45-10 record in 2023. Marshall established a new school record for wins in a season eclipsing the previous school record of 42 set by the 2017 and 2019 teams.

The Marshall fanbase came alive last season as evidenced by 2,768 green-clad supporters that turned out to watch the Thundering Herd host Alabama.

Now factor in that Morgan Zerkle, one of the most highly decorated players in the history of the program, has returned home to coach the Herd and the feeling of optimism for where she can take Marshall softball is understandable.

Selected by Extra Inning Softball as one of the Coaching Hires that Click, Zerkle was humbled by the opportunity to lead the program at her alma mater.

“I almost didn’t believe it until it was set in stone. The opportunity to have this position so early on in my career was a shock that it was really happening. I felt prepared, but kind of just in awe of such an awesome opportunity at really a perfect time for me to move on.”

In preparation for the fall season, Zerkle shared a message on social media with her team.

“I hate using the word mid-major, but at a school where sometimes you’re not going to get those fully well-rounded players, you’re going to have to develop and you’re going to have to be patient with a lot of them and teach them about a lot of different things. And that’s a process, and sometimes that process can take a while.

“We talk about the J-curve and where you start out, you might see a little dip, but if you buy in and stay through the process and keep working, eventually you’re going to surpass that previous ceiling you were at. And coming together has also been a process. We have a lot of different players from all over the country with different backgrounds and different things they like to do. It’s just been learning about each other and coming together, because I believe regardless of talent level, if you have a group of people with a common mission and they all are on the same page, you can maybe surpass your talent level.”

Bringing her team together collectively as the centerpiece for the fall, Zerkle had a clear vision for the Thundering Herd.

“The biggest goals were to learn about each other. I didn’t know them. They didn’t know me, so it was a two-way street. I want them to learn about me and what knowledge I can bring to them as a coach, but also learn how I’m going to challenge you. It might not be easy all the time, but to learn about each other and get everyone’s goals on the same page.

“What are my expectations for you? What are my expectations for this program? How do we make our goals align? I think that was something we saw at the end. We understand our goal is not just to win games, but to win big games and to make it to regionals consistently. To do that, we must up our expectations in a lot of areas. I do think we got everyone’s goals on the same page, which was the goal.”

From an offensive standpoint, Zerkle was focused on the process rather than the results.

“I don’t like to really evaluate performance in the fall because that doesn’t really matter to me. But what matters is them buying into what I’m teaching and attempting to make the corrections. And I feel strongly that they all performed in that regard. They were trying their best to make physical corrections.

“I think their ability to take coaching and attempt to make corrections was really good. We definitely performed in that aspect as far as our coachability. And then the last fall game of the year that we played, they impressed me in that when they came out swinging and weren’t thinking as much as about the mechanical adjustments but just came out swinging and trusting them a little bit. And I think they ended on a strong note with our last fall opponent.”

Saddled with minor injuries the Marshall pitching staff were unable to perform at their peak in the fall, but Zerkle was still impressed by what she saw in the circle.

“We did struggle with some medical setbacks of different natures that kept us from fully seeing everyone’s potential. So, I do look forward to having five strong, healthy pitchers return in January.

“All the pitchers I know made a lot of strides from that first outing we saw them at to the final. There was a lot of trust built up. We talked about that. We need to be able to trust you as a pitcher. Are you crossing your catcher up, or can we trust that you’re going to go in and hit your spots? It’s not going to be perfect, but we have to trust you to some extent. They definitely gained trust for each other and us as a staff in them. We need a lot of work still in the pitching circle with some of the setbacks we had. This winter break, I know they’re all going to pitch on their own, which is another trust piece.”

Zerkle didn’t face the same difficulties on the defensive side as Camryn Michallas, Sydney Bickel, Brooklyn Ulrich and Rielly Lucas all return in the infield for the Herd in 2024.

“We return the entire infield, so it was nice to have their experience help lead the defensive side of things. When you have some upperclassmen that have been there, it makes it a little easier. Some of the things on defense, fielding is one thing, throwing is one thing, but it matters too how you communicate with each other. I thought they did a great job, the returners, helping out the newbies.

“The outfield and the catchers are all battling for positions. Each day someone new impresses me because we have some very athletic players that just need more confidence being comfortable out there. It’s small skill work. The defense did well. They have a lot of physical skills. It’s just convincing them to be confident in what they’re doing and go for that ball or expect a little more out of yourself. Similar with overall performance. Let’s just raise our standard a little bit for what we think we can accomplish.”

When the calendar flips to 2024 and the start of practice begins in the spring, Zerkle will be focused on continuing to raise the standard at Marshall.

“I think a huge focus for us will be that if they have put in the work over break and all fall, our focus is going to be on believing in ourselves that we have gotten better. Therefore, expecting more out of ourselves with execution at practice and then making practice even harder.

“We want to play good teams this year and push Marshall softball to do things they’ve never done before. We may lose several games, but are we going to play the tough teams and get better through that process? Yes, I believe we are. So, just believing that, okay, we’ve figured out how to do this. We’ve done the work, and now we just have to believe that it’s going to show up on the field eventually. So, I think a belief factor in all of them will definitely be a focus.”

As Marshall continues to develop and grow as a program, Zerkle only has to look back at her playing days to gain inspiration.

“I think it started when I was a freshman at Marshall and my head coach was always saying, you know, Zerkle is really athletic, but she’s not good. She’s fast, but she’s not great. She needs skill work, so from day one, I was just pushed beyond my athletic ability.

“And I think sometimes, out of high school, everyone’s been told they’re so good. But really, it’s different when you get to college. And you may be good, but how do we make you great? And that’s something I’m always striving for is to not just be athletic and good, but to be great at what I do. Have a great swing, be great performance wise, be great mentally and now to be a great coach. I think just having that push early on helped me and its continued in all aspects of my life. And hopefully, Marshall softball now can just feel that push and that desire to not be another good program, but let’s do things great that Marshall has never accomplished before.”

*****

Marshall Thundering Herd

Head Coach: Morgan Zerkle

Assistant Coaches: Aly Harrell, Sydney McKinney, Allison Rager

Conference: Sun Belt

2023 Record: 45-10 overall, 17-5 in the Sun Belt

2023 Postseason: Sun Belt Tournament

Returnees: Kasey Wilhoit (Missed 2023 Due to Injury), Erica Holt (.136/.240/.136), Savannah Rice (.231/.267/.231/12-0/2.63/87), Aaliyah Crews (.286/.286/.286), Abby Darnley (.267/.476/.333), Sydney Bickel (.363/.449/.530), Rielly Lucas (.293/.409/.529), Camryn Michallas (.313/.388/.490), Bub Feringa (.320/.440/.460/1-0/2.47/8), Brooklyn Ulrich (.189/.257/.337)

Newcomers: Bella Gerlach (OF/ So./Corydon, Ind./Corydon Central High School/Western Michigan), Destiny Washington (OF/Fr./Lauderhill, Fla./Fort Lauderdale High School), Kasia Parks (OF/Jr./Lexington, Ky./Frederick Douglass High School/Western Kentucky), Emily Cole (P/Fr./Vanceburg, Ky./Lewis County High School), Chandler Hoskins (INF/Fr./Miamisburg, Ohio/Miamisburg High School), Bailee Walters (OF/Fr./Fairborn, Ohio/Fairborn High School), Kaleea Washington (P/Fr./Lauderhill, Fla./Fort Lauderdale High School), Sydney Bright (INF/Fr./Elkview, W. Va./Herbert Hoover High School), Lindsay Henson (P/Jr./Lawrenceburg, Ind./East Central High School/Drury), Ramey George (INF/Fr./Huntington, W.Va./St. Joseph High School), Reagan Glanz (C/Gr./Aberdeen, Wash./Aberdeen High School/Francis Marion)

(Record/ERA/Strikeouts) – Pitchers

(Batting Average/On-Base Percentage/Slugging Percentage) – Batters

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