Hugo Enjoying 'Different' Season
April 20, 2016 | Softball
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
The black war paint on her cheeks was the same, as was her look at the plate. Alex Hugo, who has hit 55 home runs in less than three full seasons with the Georgia softball team, exudes aggression and menace in the batter's box.
Hugo stood in the box in the third inning Wednesday as No. 12 Georgia took on Georgia State at Jack Turner Stadium. With runners on the corners the senior slugger stood as she always does, fast-twitch muscles just waiting to let loose on anything in range from pitcher Katie Worley.
Let loose Hugo did, with a sacrifice bunt to the left side of the infield, scoring Cortni Emanuel from third and moving Maeve McGuire to second.
"[Coach Lu Harris-Champer] didn't ask me to do it, I just did it," Hugo said.
Having spotted that the defense wasn't in to protect against the bunt, understandable given Hugo's power numbers at Georgia, Hugo said she opted for something different.
"I said, well, Cortni's on third so why not?" she said, laughing.
The sacrifice bunt wasn't the usual Hugo bomb that the Bulldogs have become so accustomed to the past three seasons, but it was a well-executed, productive play — which also sums up well Hugo's career.
"She's just a spark plug; she's always full of energy," McGuire said. "I've never seen anyone run on the field like she does, and she gives 120 percent 100 percent of the time, if that makes sense. It's really fun to watch and it also kind of rubs off on everyone in the dugout."
This hasn't been the usual season for Hugo, who last week was selected 10th by the Akron Racers in the National Pro Fastpitch draft.
Hugo went 1-for-2 with a walk, an RBI and a run scored Wednesday in the Bulldogs' 8-0 five-inning win. She's now batting .315 for the season, with only eight home runs and 42 RBIs. If you're not Alex Hugo those are fine numbers.
The native of Olathe, Kan., started her collegiate career at Kansas, where she hit .428 and smashed 15 home runs as a freshman. She was in the top 10 in the Big 12 in average, home runs and total bases — it was only the beginning.
After transferring to Georgia, Hugo was a first-team All-SEC and All-America pick as a sophomore. In her first season with the Bulldogs she led the nation with 25 homers, batted .341 and drove in a team-high 64 runs.
Hugo kept it up as a junior last season, batting .389, with 22 homers and 73 RBIs, and earning first-team All-SEC and second-team All-America honors.
It may be a down year, but Hugo is anything but down about it.
"Honestly, it's been the most different year I've had. It has also been the most fun, and a growing experience," she said. "I've never learned so much about myself, through adversity and frustration. It also has made me become so close to my teammates. I've never seen a group of girls be so supportive. They just believe in me.
"It's been an awesome year, regardless of the numbers."
Those teammates are making up for her power production, as well, including fellow senior Tina Iosefa's grand slam homer Wednesday. It was Iosefa's 17th home run of the season, moving her well past her previous career high of 14.
Wednesday against Georgia State was Georgia's last midweek game of the season. There are three SEC series left, starting this weekend at No. 2 Auburn, and then the postseason. Hugo said the fact that her time at Georgia is winding down is becoming more and more real.
"We're making scrapbook pages for every senior and once you start doing that you realize that you're not going to be able to see these girls every day, all of them," she said. "It gets sad, but it's bittersweet because I know that every day with them has built me to this moment."
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
