Last season’s primary starting pitcher, Sara Scheffert, has been sitting on the sidelines throughout the Wildcats practices, but not for reasons some might assume.

It was determined that Scheffert, now a senior, has sacroiliac joint dysfunction, which causes inflammation and irritation in the joint and lower area of her back.

Scheffert has had this injury for quite some time.

“I started to experience the pain in the middle of March last softball season,” Scheffert said. “I was hoping to recover over the summer, except once I tried to pitch again in the fall, the pain came back, but this time worse.”

In her process of recovery, Scheffert has seen two types of chiropractors, been injected twice with cortisone shots and has seen a physical therapist in Lincoln.

“The physical therapist used dry needles to release the tightness in my lower back,” Scheffert said. “And the WSC training staff is of course always there to help me stay healthy and recover from this injury.”

Softball’s assistant coach Krissi Oliver, who is also the pitching coach for the Wildcats, has also been working with Scheffert during her recovery.

“We’ve had to sit her out since the fall to rest her back. She was over-used the last few seasons while pitching through the pain,” Oliver said. “But Sara’s attitude has been great. She’s put in a lot of hard work and has been very patient to get better.

“The program we put her on was to strengthen her core, improve her posture and tweak her pitching mechanics to avoid regression when we begin to pitch again,” Oliver said.

Scheffert is very devoted to her physical recovery techniques, but she is also working on recovering the mental strength needed to pitch again.

“I think once I get comfortable with myself out on the mound again, I will recover with no problem. Right now everything is all mental for me,” Scheffert said.

“The fact that the pain could come back at any time is something that isn’t very easy for me to swallow.”

Oliver intends to pitch Scheffert for a few innings while the team is playing in Florida during spring break, but the main goal is to have Scheffert’s recovery process to the point where she can pitch in a conference game.

“This season is very important, especially for it to be my last one as a senior, so I am hoping for the best and to never experience this back pain again,” Scheffert said.