Three’s No Crowd on El Toro’s Mound : Softball: Charger rotation has plenty of room for standouts Paige Lauby, Jennifer Jourden and Marta Bickert.

While many high school softball coaches wish for one quality pitcher, El Toro Coach Jim Daugherty has been blessed with three this season.

It’s Daugherty’s job to make sure there is enough mound to go around for junior Marta Bickert and seniors Paige Lauby and Jennifer Jourden.

“It’s a unique situation,” Daugherty said. “A lot of schools would love to have just one of them.”

The three right-handers have pitched El Toro (14-5 overall, 2-0 in the South Coast League) to a No. 9 ranking in the Orange County Softball Coaches’ Poll.

And the Chargers’ 1-0 upset of second-ranked Irvine last week should lead to an even better ranking. The victory over Irvine, the defending South Coast League champion, also gives El Toro an edge in the league race.

Daugherty says he has been blessed with abundant pitching since he started at El Toro in 1986. That year Dawn Robertson and Janice Okerlund pitched El Toro to the Southern Section 2-A finals. Lauby and Jourden started as freshmen the next year.

This season, Lauby and Jourden made room for Bickert.

“Lauby, Jourden and Bickert are all different pitchers, and it is really making us a lot more versatile,” Daugherty said. “I think it keeps the other teams off balance.”

A rise ball is one of Lauby’s best weapons.

“Her ball just takes off,” Daugherty said. “And she’s got a changeup, so she has been able to really dominate teams.”

Lauby (7-0) got the victory over Irvine. She struck out 15 in a strong hitting lineup that included Jennifer Brundage, The Times’ 1989 player of the year who is hitting .500, Sam Lutsch (.464) and Karissa Meith (.355).

“I was really glad to see her come out and send them a message: Our pitching can handle your hitting,” Daugherty said.

If Lauby’s rise ball and changeup aren’t enough, hitters also have to deal with Jourden’s drop ball. Her drop ball stays low, comes in hard and tails away from right-handed hitters.

Jourden (5-2) is the only one of the three who doesn’t have a private pitching coach.

“She is naturally gifted pitching-wise,” Lauby said. “She probably has the most natural talent of all of us.”

Bickert (3-2) is the future of El Toro’s pitching. She transferred from Trabuco Hills this season when her parents moved into the district.

“Marta has an assortment of pitches,” Daugherty said. “She has a good rise, a good curve, a good breaking ball, an excellent change. Her biggest problem is she gets in situations where she wants to overpitch a little.”

Daugherty has kept the three competitive pitchers happy.

At the start of the season, he made it clear to his players that the team had a lot of quality athletes who all deserved playing time.

“I told the girls they would have to bite the bullet, and I was going to make some tough decisions that they may not like,” he said.

Although Bickert was a newcomer, Daugherty had no trouble putting her in the lineup right away.

She is a really good pitcher,” Daugherty said. “I have got to see what she can do, if she can help us or not. She is only a junior. If you’ve got a gun, you might as well shoot it.”

The pitchers’ attitudes have fostered a smooth relationship. Lauby welcomes the competition. Jourden likes the extra time off the mound. And Bickert, who was an All-Pacific Coast League selection in volleyball and basketball last season, is just happy to contribute.

“I have pitched better this year than any other year,” Lauby said. “I know it sounds bad, but it’s because I want to do better than Marta and Jennifer. Maybe it’s an ego thing. I want to show that I’m better than they are.

“I don’t want them to do badly, because I want the team to win. And if they do well, I know I’ll have to do that much better to beat them. In fact, the better they do the better I try to do the next day, because I know there are two other pitchers and (Daugherty) doesn’t have to (put me in) the next day.”

After injuring her pitching shoulder before the season, Jourden welcomes the rest.

“It’s even nicer now because I have two games to rest and there is always somebody to back me up,” she said. “Plus they give me a lot of confidence, so it is nice.”

When she’s not pitching, Jourden plays third base. Bickert and Lauby play first, and when Jourden’s on the mound and Bickert is at first, Lauby is the designated hitter.

Bickert’s attitude helped the rotation go smoothly. And it helped that the trio got along before they were teammates.

In fact, they won’t even say who is the best pitcher of the three.

“We share equally, so we’re equal pitchers,” Lauby said.

“That’s a hard decision,” Jourden said. “I’m sure we’re all good in the different ways we pitch.”

Don’t ask Daugherty for an answer.

“I figure they are smart enough to know who I might count on more than another,” he said. “And I figure the all-league awards will show who is the best.”