Karen Weekly needed Tennessee softball to just relax during the first game of a doubleheader at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.
The Lady Vols trailed Appalachian State by one after a solo home run in the first at-bat of the game. The offense that had outscored opponents 113-5 going into the home opener had only managed two hits in the first four innings.
So, during a review, the longtime Lady Vols coach opted for some humor to loosen the team up.
“Well, we talked about how it’s impossible to keep a certain body part clenched when you’re breathing, taking good, deep breaths out of your diaphragm,” Weekly said, raising a clenched fist as she spoke. “And I challenged them, I said do it. I go, clench that … hole right now and breathe. And they realized you can’t do both. So I said, ‘you know, if we keep breathing, we’re going to relax.’
“So it got them laughing, but also just demonstrating the importance of breathing and they know that. But sometimes they forget in the heat of the moment.”
The message landed with the No. 1 Lady Vols, who scored six runs in fifth inning. They tacked on three more in the sixth to walk it off for a 9-1 run-rule win over Appalachian State (12-3) on Feb. 27.
Weekly sensed the team was too amped up for their first game at home – she even said earlier in the week that the matchup was their trap game. But after the win, the team relaxed a bit too much, and Weekly felt they lacked a sense of urgency to start the second game against Penn State.
The Lady Vols only had three hits in the first four innings before loading the bases with singles in the fifth. Ella Dodge then crushed a grand slam to left field in the fifth to give Tennessee (16-0) the 4-1 win against the Nittany Lions (14-3) to remain perfect on the season.
Dodge went 2-for-5 with five RBIs with two runs and two walks in the two games. The sophomore infielder said she wasn’t surprised by Weekly’s humorous message, because “she’s always got something.”
But the message was tied back to a breathing practice that the team has emphasized this season. Dodge said every day before practice, they sit down in a circle before stretches and breathe for three to five minutes – she can’t remember the exact time anymore, she just sits down and starts breathing.
The goal is to breathe through their diaphragm and not their shoulders, to center themselves and be in the moment no matter what’s happening around them.
Sometimes players breathe with the person next to them. Before Dodge’s grand slam there was a timeout, and Taelyn Holley grabbed Dodge’s hands and they breathed together.
“This year we’ve really emphasized it, and we’ve practiced it so that when we get in these moments, we can be prepared for it,” Dodge said. “It really helps us calm our heart rate down and just trust ourselves, because sometimes when the game speeds up and pressure builds, you either slow down and you freeze or you speed up and just do whatever. So just really being able to calm those nerves and get them going in the right direction.”
Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social. Support strong local journalism and unlock premium perks:knoxnews.com/subscribe
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Karen Weekly had a humorous message to help Tennessee softball stay perfect