Her new responsibilities had been given to her at a time when she needed a confidence boost.
So, Ashleigh Viers-Gordillo needed to accept the latest round of tasks, which featured batting leadoff for a team stocked with stellar hitters.
That's correct: Viers-Gordillo, the steady junior first baseman for the Crescenta Valley High softball team, had to bat lead off on a regular basis for the first time in what's become a budding career.
At first, she wasn't too comfortable with the idea that veteran Crescenta Valley Coach Dan Berry had plotted. In the end, it played a significant role in the Falcons sharing the Pacific League championship with rival Arcadia this season.
Viers-Gordillo batted a team-high .553 with four home runs and 46 runs batted in. She also didn't commit an error while patrolling first base and proved to be the sparkplug to ignite the Falcons to the CIF Southern Section Division III playoffs in May and earn the league's co-most valuable player with Arcadia's Jenna Rodriguez.
"I was kind of shocked at first because I had never batted leadoff [regularly] before, but I thought I had to give it a try," said Viers-Gordillo, who was unanimously selected as the 2007 All-Area Softball Player of the Year by the sports writers and editors of the Glendale News-Press, Burbank Leader and La Cañada Valley Sun. "It took a while for it to sink in because I had a rough year last year with the bat.
"It was a big change, but I had to think about what I had to do to get on base and gain more confidence in myself."
Viers-Gordillo, who earned All-CIF Southern Section first-team accolades, stepped in just fine for the Falcons.
She consistently got on base to set the tone for the heart of Crescenta Valley's lineup that featured sophomore shortstop Baillie Kirker and junior catcher Lainey DePompa.
Berry had a hunch that shifting Viers-Gordillo, who mostly batted toward the bottom of the lineup last year, to the top spot would work.
"She's got a very solid demeanor," Berry said. "She's in control of herself and does what needs to be done.
"She might have a bad at bat, but you know that she will come back and park a double somewhere. Plus, she unbelievable on defense and knows where the ball will be hit."
