So here you are. It's a big game, and you're at home plate staring down Homestead pitcher Jacqui Matheis. She's glaring right back. After two looks at it, you're finally ready to hit that fastball that takes less than half a second to slap Nikki Wilson's glove behind the plate.

She goes into her windup, looking at the ground with right arm raised high. You're thinking, “Here it comes! Here it comes,” and you swing. Problem is, this time the ball still hasn't crossed the plate, and you could probably swing a second time before that change-up gets there. Don't worry; you're not the only one she's fooled.

Matheis struck out 178 batters this season while winning 21 of the 23 games in which she pitched, allowing less than half a run per game (0.46 ERA) and leading the Spartans to an undefeated regular season (29-1 overall) – all of which put her among the state leaders in every pitching statistical category.

Though she will be the first person to credit Homestead's potent offense, led by Wilson, Jena Hamrick and Melissa Harber, and its stingy defense, Matheis has earned the title of PrepSports Softball Player of the Year for the 2009 season.

“This season was my favorite season, by far, of any year I've ever played,” Matheis says. “We ended our season earlier than I wanted to, but I'll never forget this season. It was so much fun and memorable.”

It wasn't her stats or the team's state and national rankings, but the teammates, the friends, that made this year what it was. It was the times like Wednesday and Thursday when Matheis and Wilson, her favorite catcher and longtime friend, geared up in 90-plus heat to play some pitch and catch all by themselves at Homestead's field to get ready to play for the North all-star team this weekend in Indianapolis.

It was the times like not even knowing she had thrown a perfect game this year against East Noble – until her teammates let her know.

“I couldn't do it without (my teammates),” she says. “They're my support, and they do get me out of jams. When I'm not having a good game, I know that they're there to get that tough play.

“Their hitting helped me a lot too. Being up there, knowing that they'll give me a run, they'll give me comfort, I don't put as much pressure on myself. I do a lot better when I'm not under pressure, so knowing it's a 3-0 game makes it so much easier on me.”

The youngest of four, Matheis watched her sisters play softball from an early age. It was never really a matter of whether she would take up the sport, but when she would concentrate on it. Playing softball was a natural fit.

Jacqui's mom, Ann Matheis, says it's been both special and a bit emotional to watch her youngest daughter develop into a competitor. As Homestead's assistant coach, she's seen it from closer than most parents might.

“In the early years, there was more of a daughter-mom relationship,” Ann says. “As she matured, as I matured as a coach, this year honestly I didn't coach my daughter. I coached the team. Both of us had our moments, but we grew. It was a really good relationship this year.

“(As a mom) I couldn't be prouder. Almost everything Jacqui has accomplished in the circle, she's done on her own. She's competitive and a great team player. It's just been a fabulous journey to see her mature as a ballplayer and a team leader.”

Now Jacqui shifts to her summer travel team, which will play in more games and tournaments than she wants to count. She's graduated, and it's lake season after all. The only thing she wants to count is the number of days left until she's lounging on a beach in Baja before starting school at Indiana University.

As it stands right now, Matheis won't be pitching for the Hoosiers. She's ready to get down to the business of just going to college and studying speech and hearing science with the intent of becoming a speech pathologist.

But every time she remembers how silly a batter looks chasing her change-up, Matheis gets the itch to dial coach Michelle Gardner's number and ask about walking on.