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Rockport fireballer Nelson hoping to pitch Vikings back to tourney

Friday, April, 04 By Nick Curcuru
Correspondent

If you are Rockport pitcher Tia Nelson, you are not like most high school athletes.

The junior captain is entering her fifth season on the Vikings softball team. She has had a starting spot on the team since she was in seventh grade, and has been the team's starting pitcher since she was in eighth grade.

Nelson has built an impressive resume over the years. The pitcher was a Cape Ann League All-Star as a sophomore. She also pitched the Vikings to a state tournament berth as an eighth-grader. Nelson thinks her abundance of experience will be key to her success this season.

"Experience is huge," said Nelson, who is also an all-star basketball player for the Vikings. "I have been starting since I was a seventh-grader and all of that game experience has paid dividends."

Nelson is hoping to lead the Vikings back to the state tournament this season. Rockport nearly qualified last season, finishing 8-10.

"We have a pretty good shot at it this year," Nelson said of the Vikings tournament chances. "We have a young team but there are a lot of talented players."

Nelson's best attribute on the mound is her fastball. The junior captain uses her power pitches to blow hitters away. She also gets the job done at the plate for the Vikings, serving as the team's No. 3 hitter and one of its top run-producers.

Freshman Samantha Palazzola is Nelson's catcher this season, and she has a first-hand look of just how talented the junior right-hander is.

"It's tough catching (Tia) sometimes because she throws a lot harder than the pitchers I'm used to catching," Palazzola said. "She is a very important player to our team. We have a good infield and outfield, but without Tia's pitching we wouldn't win many games. Catching her is definitely making me a better player."

First-year Vikings head coach Dianne Parisi also thinks highly of Nelson's skill.

"She has a very heavy fastball," Parisi said. "Opponents have a hard time hitting her. With Tia on the mound, games usually come down to small ball and manufacturing runs because they don't get a lot of hits off her."

As if her on-field talent were not enough, Nelson is also a natural leader off the field.

"Tia is a leader in every way possible," Parisi said. "She is a student of the game and she loves to play. That attitude rubs off on her teammates. She gets a lot of respect from her team and they really look up to her."

Palazzola agrees that Nelson's leadership is just as important to the team as her pitching.

"The team looks up to Tia because she has been a starter since she was in seventh grade," Palazzola said. "She is the team leader, she knows all of the situations and walks us through them. Plus, she does a good job helping our young players get used to varsity softball."

All in all, Nelson is looking to use her skills to help the team get back to the state tournament for the first time since 2005.

"I just need to go out there and do my best every game," Nelson said. "Our team goal is to get into the state tournament and I need to do all I can to help us get there."