ORONO, Maine — Rachel Carlson hit .224 for the University of Maine softball team last season with one extra-base hit.
Rachel Harvey hit .200 in 55 at-bats. Kristen Niland played in only two games.
That trio have dramatically elevated their games to help lead the Black Bears to the America East championship and their first NCAA tournament berth since 2004.
Maine faces host Georgia at 3:30 p.m. Friday in the four-team, double-elimination regional.
Carlson, a sophomore center fielder, is hitting .336 with seven extra-base hits and 16 runs batted in. She had three RBIs in 2015.
Harvey, a junior left fielder and catcher, is hitting .352 with five homers and 23 RBIs. She didn’t homer last season and posted only 12 RBIs. She has scored 29 runs — 27 more than last year.
First baseman Niland, a sophomore, is hitting .307 with a homer and 17 RBIs.
“They are confident and that is so important because hitting is 90 percent mental,” said Maine senior catcher Janelle Bouchard, the America East Player of the Year. “To see them have so much success is awesome.”
“Kristen worked her tail off over the summer and came back a different hitter. She improved her mechanics and how to use her lower body,” said Maine head coach Mike Coutts.
“Rachel Carlson went home and worked with her coach on slapping to get better at that. Rachel Harvey was lunging at everything last year. I told her she had to stay back or it was never going to work out for her.”
Harvey approached Coutts at the end of last season and told him she intended to learn how to play the outfield.
“We were going to have a phenomenal senior catcher in Janelle and I wanted to help the team any way that I could.
“It’s totally different than catching. The throwing is different. But Rachel [Carlson] and Erika [right fielder Erika Leonard] have really helped me. I love it now,” said Harvey.
Carlson suffered through injuries last year, including a back ailment and shin splints, but she has gotten healthy, more confident and stronger.
“I worked a lot with with my old travel coach, Larry Rodriguez, on hitting and focused on different parts of slapping. And I had a year of experience under my belt,” said Carlson. “I knew what to expect at this level and how to adjust to it.”
Niland began her evolution by getting in better shape.
“I lost a lot of weight, 30 pounds,” said Niland. “Literally, the day I left last year, I knew what I wanted to be for this program and I knew I could do it. And a day didn’t go by without me doing something to make sure I became the player I wanted to become.
“I’m a lot more confident and a lot more calm at the plate,” she added.
Harvey worked with her father, Bill, and brother Joey on her swing.
“I’ve widened my stance and that has enabled me to keep my weight back,” said Harvey. “That has helped me so much.”