Humble hurler
All-CIF Redondo softball pitcher Kat Ung has seen her hard work pay off with a trip to the CIF-SS Division 3 championship game.
Redondo senior Kat Ung was the ace of the Sea Hawk pitching staff for four seasons, capturing Bay League titles each year. Photo
She has been the ace of the Redondo softball pitching staff for four seasons. Yet despite her many accomplishments, Kat Ung is quick to deflect attention away from herself and toward her teammates.
The left handed pitcher will most likely earn her third straight All-CIF selection this season after leading the Sea Hawks to their fourth straight Bay league championship and first trip to the CIF-Southern Section finals since 1994.
Going into last Saturday’s CIF-SS Division 3 championship game against top-seeded Grand Terrace, Ung was the winning pitcher in all four playoff games, tossing three shutouts along the way. She had a 14-6 record with a 1.32 ERA, striking out 153 batters while walking only 20 in 111.2 innings.
Ung was excited about the possibility of finishing her prep career with a championship ring.
“Losing humbles me and makes me grateful for every win,” Ung said. “Losing two games in Bay League this year proved we should not take any team for granted. I’m so proud of our team particularly (sophomore) Laura Chafe, who stepped up when I sprained my elbow early in the season.”
Although she will go down as one of the top pitchers in Redondo school history, posting a career record of 53-18 entering her final game, Ung said the highlight of her high school career has been the relationships she has made with her teammates.
“We’ve fought some tough battles to win four Bay League titles,” Ung said. “We’d lose seniors but have had freshmen come in and produce at a high level. It’s been exciting to see the different makeup of the teams each season. It makes me look back and see how different my mentality is compared to my freshman year.”
Along with being a southpaw, Ung is recognized by the face mask she wears while pitching in the circle.
“I was in middle school and remember Redondo’s pitcher Brett Aspel being hit in the face by a comebacker,” Ung recalled. “My dad thought paying $40 for a mask was a cheap investment to help prevent a serious injury. I’m not afraid of the ball by any means and, fortunately, I have not been hit in the face.”
Ung feels her vast experience is the strength of her game. As a freshman, she relied on the rise ball but when hitters began to catch up to it, she switched to throwing the changeup during her sophomore year.
After going back to the rise ball as a junior, she spent hours working with Redondo pitching coach Tom “Jud” Judson and her personal coach of three years Savana Lloyd to perfect her curveball, while focusing on inside pitches.
Kat Ung slides safely into home avoiding the tag by the catcher. Photo
“Kat’s strength as a pitcher definitely lies in her lefty talents,” Lloyd said. “She has amazing natural movement on her pitches, she spins the ball very well and has fantastic command of her pitches. She trusts herself as a pitcher and knows that if she gives 100 percent that is enough. I love this mentality about Kat because often pitchers and athletes in general want to be bigger and better. Kat recognizes her strengths, owns who she is, and has pure confidence in herself and her pitching abilities. Because of this she extremely solid on the mental side of the game.”
Ung has developed a close relationship with Redondo head coach Jennifer Dessert. She has mentored Ung longer than any other coach.
“Honestly, at this point in time it’s hard to accept that Kat is leaving,” Dessert said. “I have had some special kids go through my program over the years and to say she will be missed is an understatement. She is poised and tough and communicates with coaches and teammates well.”
Dessert admits Ung has put extra pressure on herself this year after getting so close to the CIF finals in 2015
“Being forced to go to the sidelines and rest was really what she needed to get things back in order,” Dessert said. “I feel like she was able to finally rest and take the weight of the season off her shoulders. The girls who have gone through the last four years with Kat know that her presence here has raised our level of play and expectations for players coming in the future.”
Off the field, Ung has the reputation of being a jokester and story teller, but on the field she is all business.
“It’s just not me on the field. A pitcher just helps the team stay in the game,” Ung said. “You have to trust your defense and offense to win the game. My team lifts the pressure off me and I’m so grateful for all of the teammates I have had.”
She also values her relationship with Dessert, who has relied on Ung to be a sparkplug for the Sea Hawk offense. She has batted .355 this season.
“Our relationship has grown and is based on honesty,” Ung explained. “I respect her so much and she has done so much for softball in Redondo Beach. I’ll always remember her saying ‘You are worth every ounce of positive thinking you can give yourself every single day.’”
With the end of her high school playing days ending soon, Ung had time to reflect on her four-year varsity career.
“I’ve played with and against so many different players and I have learned a lot from them,” Ung said. “I remember facing Mira Costa’’s Taylor Glover when I was a freshman. I remember every pitch I threw. She was a big senior and I was so intimidated.
“Beating Costa that year for the Bay League title was special. It was an amazing game. They beat us 12-0 the first time we played but I was sick and didn’t get to play. I figured I had nothing to lose and just played my hardest and we won 5-3. That win gave me the confidence that I can help my team and trust my teammates. Our defense made every play and Korynn Ben Amor made an outstanding catch in right field to help us win the game. It was the first big win in my softball career and the feeling of being a part of that team was so exciting.”
Ung remembers senior infielder Kristen Currie taking her under her wing during her freshman season.
Kat Ung has been a spark plug for Redondo’s offense since batting .352 her freshman year. She finished her senior season batting .355 with 10 RBI ending with a .423 career batting average. Photo
“Kristen was an impact player but missed most of her senior season because of injury,” Ung said. “She was so encouraging and made me feel very comfortable as the youngest member of the team along with Allison Betty. My advice to young players coming up is to stay humble and never expect the game to be easy. Give it all you can and don’t play to inflate your stats. Put the team first.”
Growing up, Ung played tennis and soccer but stopped in eighth grade to focus of softball. She was introduced to softball by a soccer teammate who encouraged her to play fall ball when she was eight years old.
Her career as a pitcher, however, got off to a slow start..
“I mocked my teammate while I was at the batting cages so I basically taught myself how to pitch,” Ung explained. “But I had the wrong mechanics and dislocated my elbow.”
Along with playing for Redondo, Ung has competed on various travel ball teams. She began to excel as a pitcher playing for the South Bay Dynasty. She currently is a member of the South Bay Diamond Girls and teaches pitching to younger kids with Lloyd and Hermosa Beach Little League.
Ung’s favorite player is former University of Texas All-American and Olympic softball gold-medalist Cat Osterman.
“Like me, she’s left handed and not the fastest pitcher, but the movement of her pitches makes her a winner,” Ung said.
Ung has attracted the attention of college softball programs and will be attending Azusa Pacific University in the fall, a choice that was not difficult to make.
“Academics was my top priority and I love the atmosphere there,” Ung said. “I met the Azusa coaches at a camp when I was a sophomore and the staff gave me some great pointers on pitching. I was invited to a second camp that happened to be on my sister Kristen’s birthday. I was so grateful for the offer to play there and being a religious school made my decision to go there extremely easy.”
Ung has a 3.9 GPA and, although her major is undeclared, she has an interest in business, history and athletic training.
She credits her parents Wayne and Bridgett for teaching hard work ethics and humility and is a big fan of younger sister Kristen, a 15-year-old sophomore who is captain of Redondo’s Junior Varsity softball team.
“My parents taught me so many important things and stressed the importance of an education,” Ung said. “I thank them for dragging me to practices and driving to Lancaster on a Friday afternoon for tournaments. They taught me to be selfless and to always give credit to teammates.”
A self-proclaimed nerd who enjoys reading, particularly history, Ung is also involved with her church youth group and is a Redondo Beach Youth Commissioner.
Kat’s biggest improvement has been in her ability to make adjustments from one pitch to the next, Lloyd said. “The small adjustments that are the hardest to make she does it and she does it well. She is extremely patient, yet competitive and that combination takes her a long ways.
“Her attitude is the best. She is always smiling, and is just a great girl, teammate and student. She brings up everyone around her. I also enjoy how consistent she is in everything she does. From being punctual, to always working her hardest, to having a great attitude. She’s a leader. No matter what day it is, she shows up with the same level of greatness.”