It might be Paige’s fault. See, if she weren’t such a good hairdresser, there might not be as much of a reliance on her for braids, which would’ve eliminated the arguments about those pregame hair appointments.
But then, there would be others.
“‘That’s not yours! You’re wearing mine!’” Jami Hotle said with a grin, mimicking her daughters when there is a mix-up of their identical team-colored compression shirts. “Same thing with the hair ties and who drank all the water.”
There are even some disputes about pitch placement when Kat and Paige Hotle work together during batting practice.
Those are the typical “angry for five minutes” quarrels to be expected when siblings only two years apart happen to be softball teammates. Colleagues at an ice cream parlor, too. (Where Paige insists she’s the more efficient worker.)
Grace isn’t involved in as many of those squabbles, though. The age gap, Kat said, allays some potential conflicts. Besides, with the youngest sister in middle school, there isn’t as much common ground for them to butt heads anyway.
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And when they’re in uniform and that energy is all channeled toward an opponent, there is harmony. For a couple hours.
Scott Satterlee met with Keith and Jami Hotle last offseason and explained that he had a roster opening on his Roy C. Ketcham varsity team that he believed Grace Hotle could fill, and the parents immediately were awestruck. Not only was it significant that a seventh-grader was being promoted onto a potential title contender, but the move would bring the trio of sisters together as teammates for the first and only time.
“They’ve always inspired me, and I wanted to be like them,” said Grace Hotle, who turned 13 last week. “Getting to be on the team with them is really special.”
Even more special because she earned the starting gig at second base, joining her sisters who have starred for years on a loaded infield.
“They’re the two closest people to me so it’s indescribable to have them both on the team,” Paige said of her sisters. “Knowing how much Grace worked the last two years, and how much better she’s gotten, to even make this a possibility, makes us appreciate this even more.”
Kat, a senior, is a standout third baseman who is committed to Sacred Heart University. Paige is a sophomore who has blossomed into one of the elite catchers in Section 1 since being brought up in the seventh grade. Grace, the sisters say, might have even more potential.
Unlike the older two who are righty-swinging power threats, Grace is a left-handed slap hitter whose contact skills and speed can confound pitchers and infield defenses.
“She’s here because she deserves to be,” Satterlee said of Grace, insisting her promotion wasn’t meant for novelty. “It’s surreal to me, having all three of them here, but it’s even cooler that they’re all having success.”
For someone who didn’t know, a quick glance at a Ketcham lineup card might raise an eyebrow, seeing the same last name repeated.
In fact, teammate Jenny Nardelli joked, she’s literally surrounded on the field.
“I look around,” the shortstop said, “and Kat is to my right, Grace is to my left and straight ahead is Paige behind the plate.”
Seeing that, Jami Hotle said, has brought tears to her eyes. It’s a dash of saccharine added to what already was going to be a sentimental spring with Kat graduating next month and soon heading off to Connecticut.
“We savor every game and we’re excited to wake up on game days,” Jami Hotle said of the family. “But I also know it’s one less game we’ll have with them together.”
The girls try to avoid sounding schmaltzy about it, but they readily acknowledge how significant the upcoming weeks are, for that reason. Despite the frequent bickering, Paige said, “she’s my best friend” and the farewell “will be hard for us both.”
It’s why, they agreed, there is an even greater impetus to make this season memorable.
‘We’ve got a softball player’
Jami Hotle was sure to preface it by saying, “I wasn’t as good as my kids,” but she was a talented player on the Ketcham softball team in the early 1990s. Keith Hotle, meanwhile, was a wrestler and football player at nearby Spackenkill High School.
It seemed almost a certainty that their children would eventually become athletes. When the couple learned that Jami was pregnant with Kathryn, Keith began his announcement to relatives, “We’re having a softball player!”
It started with wiffle ball in the backyard of their Wappingers Falls home, then Little League, and travel ball later on. Paige followed right behind in Kat’s footsteps, then Grace after her.
“I remember that, from an early age, you could see it,” Kat said of her sisters’ abilities. “We’d be outside, messing around, and you could see they were coordinated and pretty athletic. As we got older, it got more serious and we got competitive with each other, and they could hold their own.”
Most of what she knows, Grace said, came from studying her sisters and applying their advice. From there, Jami said, “time and everything else just flew by.”
Kat made the varsity team as an eighth-grader and soon excelled as a slick-fielding third baseman. Paige was brought up as a seventh-grader and, despite being so young at a demanding position, she capably handled the pitching staff.
Grace said one of her favorite sports memories was attending Paige’s debut in 2021 and being almost in disbelief that “she could be on varsity at that age.” Little did she know.
Kat and Paige, both of whom have earned all-section and Journal All-Star honors, are part of a core that sparked Ketcham’s ascent in recent years. They now bat third and fourth in a cyclical lineup that has Grace hitting ninth, serving almost as a second leadoff hitter.
The Storm enjoyed a breakthrough season last spring, reaching the Section 1 Class AA semifinals. But the graduation of some key players, including star shortstop Ava Gambichler, led to some lineup shuffling and the need for an infielder.
“I thought it was a possibility because of how well she was (progressing),” Kat said of Grace being promoted. “In the back of my mind, I thought it could happen.”
When Satterlee suggested it, Grace said she was “overjoyed” and excitedly accepted, but there was an understanding of the challenges ahead. She worked with a hitting instructor throughout the winter and regularly hit the gym with her sisters.
“I told her it wouldn’t be easy because the competition is much better and everyone has so much more experience,” Paige said. “Plus, when you come up so early, you feel a little pressure to prove that you’re good enough. I told her not to worry about that; just be confident.”
It didn’t take long for Grace to introduce herself, going 2 for 3 with two runs in their 4-3 win over Harrison in the second game of the season.
The team was “very welcoming”, Grace said, but she still initially was overwhelmed and believed she “needed to live up to expectations.” That tension has eased in recent weeks as she’s gotten more comfortable within the group.
“It’s still kind of surreal,” Kat said. “I think back to us playing in the backyard, and now being here and playing the infield together. It means a lot to me to have this in my senior year.”
With the playoffs upcoming, Ketcham continues its tuning and, obviously, hopes to surpass the run it had a year ago. Their lineup is littered with talented hitters including Nardelli, Emma Kozlowski, Mea Metz, Christiana Simou, Claire Moore and pitcher Kaelyn Brenner.
And, of course, Hotle, Hotle and Hotle.
“It’s incredible,” their mom said. “As a parent, you’re fortunate to have a kid who’s good enough to play at the varsity level. To have three, at the same time, you feel lucky and very grateful. It’s priceless.”
Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com; 845-437-4826; Twitter: @StephenHaynes4
This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Softball: Ketcham's trio of standout sisters on the infield makes for 'priceless' season
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