LA CROSSE — Catcher Avary Makarewicz felt like she finished her junior season at Tennessee-Martin on a roll.
She had at least one hit in nine of her final 11 games and came to La Crosse for her second season in the Northwoods League with some confidence. The Steam would need that continue moving forward after its first softball season.
Makarewicz has picked up where she left off with the Skyhawks and been a bat on which coach Brandi Alonzo can relay through the first 10 games of the season.
“She is crushing everything,” Alonzo said of Makarewicz after the Steam practiced at Three Rivers Performance as the rain fell on Wednesday. “Anytime she’s in the (batter’s) box, I feel like we have the possibility of one, two, three or four runs depending on how many runners are on base.
“And when she is on base, she’s always looking for the opportunity to move up, and I’m going to give her the green light.”
The Steam have had some trouble breaking into the win column this summer with a 2-8 record, but Makarewicz — a Ripon native who played previously at Eastern Illinois — has been the most productive cog in a batting order that has been performing pretty consistently.
Makarewicz is batting .438 with 4 home runs and 21 runs batted in to go with 4 doubles, 1 triple and 1 stolen base. She has reached safely at least once in all 10 games, has at least 1 hit in nine of them and has homered in two straight games on the way to slugging 1.000 before Friday night’s home game against Wausau.
“I’m just keeping everything simple and not worrying about what the pitchers are going to throw,” said Makarewicz, who is 7 for 13 with 2 home runs, 3 doubles, 1 triple and 12 RBIs in the past 4 games. “I’m just reacting, staying aggressive and not looking for a walk but to hit something hard.”
That’s an approach that began with her move from Eastern Illinois — where she was primarily a pinch-hitter at the end of 2024 — to Tennessee-Martin. Her at-bats jumped from 50 to 139, and she had at least 1 hit in 8 of the final 9 games with 2 of her 8 home runs during that span.
Makarewicz’s power and timely hits have been essential for the Steam, and her 21 RBIS are far and away the leader in the clubhouse for a team that has averages 6.7 runs per game.
“She’s having better at-bats from top to bottom,” Alonzo said of Makarewicz. “I think she’s swinging at pitches that she can drive, and the results are showing that.
“She’s doing a good job of getting deep into counts, and she’s making some good takes on those pitches that are close. Her at-bats have been phenomenal.”
