By Paul Suellentrop
On May 17, 2021, Wichita State softball players walked out of the locker room at Wilkins Stadium and saw two pitching machines in the circle.
Coaches set one to throw 69 mph and inside to right-handed hitters and the other at 54 mph to simulate a changeup from Texas A&M junior Makinzy Herzog.
The setup produced a miserable time for hitters four days before the biggest games of the season.
"The first day we were like 'This is impossible – how am I supposed to get my barrel to the ball when it's coming 70 mph at my hands,'" said outfielder Addison Barnard, then a freshman.