Softball: Ex-Oswego East star Mia Corres brings hot bat south, leading JUCO in hitting

As Mia Corres pauses to reflect on the first day of spring, the former Oswego East softball star quickly turns to the benefits of college life in Oklahoma.

“I like the weather here in Oklahoma; it’s warm in Oklahoma,” Corres said. “I think it’s 70 degrees here today.”

Corres sure has brought a hot bat south with her.

A freshman at Rose State College, just outside of Oklahoma City, Corres is leading all National Junior College Athletic Association Division I hitters with at least five games played in batting average, .577 on the season through 26 games.

Corres, a center fielder batting third or fourth, has four homers, 33 runs batted in, 37 runs scored and 21 stolen bases for 20-8 Rose State.

“I’m just trying to to relax and have fun, keep everything simple, not do too much,” Corres said.

It perhaps shouldn’t surprise that Corres is off to such a brilliant start to her college career.

The three-time Record Newspapers All-Area pick, third team All-State by the Illinois Coaches Association as a senior at Oswego East, batted .435 with a .512 on-base percentage for the Wolves last year with a program record nine triples.

Corres, though, conceded that she had some struggles in the fall season playing against Division II schools. She focused on simplifying things, not trying too hard and trusting in the work that she’s put in.

So far, so good.

“It’s been going well when I don’t overcomplicate things,” Corres said.

Corres is a good 12 hours away from Oswego in Oklahoma, and rarely gets back to her home town. But home in a sense has made the trip with her.

Her dad, stepmom, two little sisters and grandmother moved to Broken Arrow, Ok., about 90 minutes away from school. Corres lives in a four-bedroom apartment with teammates. Corres said the plan all along was for her family to move to Oklahoma or Texas, which factored into her college decision.

“Once they decided on Oklahoma that’s where I focused with my recruiting emails. Rose State was the one that got back to me the most,” Corres said. “I’ve enjoyed it. The transition wasn’t as tough as I thought it would be.”

The same can be said on the field.

Corres said that pitchers at the JUCO level have a little more movement on their pitches than the ones she saw in high school, and have better placement than high school. Velocity-wise, though, it’s pretty similar.

“At the plate it’s just swinging away, being aggressive early in the count and just trusting my hands and not overthinking things,” Corres said. “Honestly playing in JUCO has been pretty similar. As far as the routine, we have longer pregames, get there four hours early, play a lot of doubleheaders, but it’s all fun to me. The game is the same.”

It could be a steppingstone to playing at the Division I level, Corres’ goal all long. But she doesn’t get too caught up in what’s next, or her statistics for that matter.

“When I first saw [her stats], one of my teammates showed me online and I was like I didn’t know how to check that. It’s been cool to watch the stats, but I try to take them with a grain of salt and not let it affect my play,” Corres said. “I think my parents check them more than me. I try not to focus on stats, never been big on them. I’m just trying to stay consistent and have fun, not get too high or low.”