Mater Dei’s Cline Loves Life Behind Plate : Softball: Senior catcher, who once caught more than 40 innings in 24 hours and hit .314 last season, has signed to play at Washington.

All of us should like what we do as much as Jennifer Cline likes being a catcher.

Just how much does Cline, a senior at Mater Dei High School, enjoy scrambling and crouching in the dirt behind home plate? Let us count the innings.

Last summer, Cline accompanied her club softball team, the Valencia-based Pirettes, to the 18-under national championships outside Baltimore. There, the Pirettes played an early-round game that lasted 18 innings and didn’t finish until after 2 a.m.

Cline, obviously one to finish what she starts, caught all 18 innings. Six hours after the end of the marathon, which the Pirettes lost, Cline was back behind the plate--for the first of four tournament games that day.

Forty-plus innings of chalk in the mouth and sweat on the mask in less than 24 hours. Yep, she must like it.

“After the last game, I was kind of surprised I had the energy to catch the whole day,” Cline said. “But I never thought about it while I was catching because I was having a good time.”

Which is more than opposing pitchers and baserunners can say when they go against Cline. At Mater Dei last season, Cline hit .314 and earned first-team all-league honors and the reputation as a top defensive catcher.

“Jennifer’s as good as I’ve seen defensively,” Mater Dei Coach Cathy Quesnell said. “There’s nobody better in Orange County and nobody better that I’ve seen outside the county.

“She’s got a great work ethic and great determination. I admire her for being willing to work to become the best.”

Cline has been competing for club softball teams--referred to as “travel ball”--since she was 6. She started as a pitcher, but happily switched to catcher when asked.

Since moving behind the plate, Cline has put in long hours of work on the fundamentals of her position. The result of her efforts is Cline’s all-around prowess at catcher.

“Our pitchers are spoiled from having Jennifer catch for them,” Quesnell said. “Besides the stops she makes on bad pitches, she really knows how to handle pitchers and control the game.”

When opponents reach base, Cline looks forward to the opportunity to gun down a would-be base stealer. It usually takes only one Cline throw to second to nail a runner; after that, the basepaths stay clear for the rest of the game.

“I really thrive on throwing people out or picking them off first,” Cline said. “It’s fun, and it’s something I’ve worked on a lot to make (her throwing) one of the strongest parts of my game.”

As a hitter, Cline doesn’t get many good opportunities in the Angelus League. Quesnell said teams have pitched around Cline in the past and expects Cline again to receive a lot of walks this year.

“At times it’s kind of frustrating when I don’t get anything to hit, but I just hang in there,” Cline said. “The walks are nice, but I want a chance to hit when there’s a runner on second in a tie game.”

In the 18-under national championships, Cline demonstrated her hitting ability with a .375 average against the nation’s top junior pitchers. This season, she hopes to bring her Mater Dei average up to where she thinks it should be.

“I haven’t hit as well in high school because I don’t think my concentration is as good as in travel ball,” Cline said. “I need to work on being more of a consistent hitter. It shouldn’t matter who I’m hitting against, I should always be focused.”

Still, Cline earns respect at the plate.

“Teams play her so deep,” Quesnell said. “Even when Jennifer kills the ball, she usually only gets a single.”

Her all-around skills earned her a scholarship to Washington, which she selected over UCLA, Arizona, Notre Dame, Cal and Texas A & M.

“Next year will be the first year for the softball program at Washington,” Cline said. “I felt comfortable there and liked everything about the school academically, and they’re building a brand-new softball field that might have a dome.”

A year-round all-weather facility for softball? They might never get Cline out of there.