Maleah Clinton's numbers, positive approach stand out

SANDUSKY — It's not an exaggeration to say Maleah Clinton can do it all on the softball field. The Sandusky senior star is a legitimate five-tool player. She hits for average and power. She has great speed, a rocket arm and reliable glove. In addition to her obvious skills, she brings some intangibles to the diamond. Clinton plays the game with joy. She'll greet umpires and keep her teammates loose in the dugout and in center field. "I try to be like that all the time," Clinton said. "Someone has to be the cheerful one because we definitely tend to get down on ourselves a lot. I feel like I've been doing that since eighth grade." Clinton, who doesn't lack for confidence, approached Sandusky varsity coach Bob Eis four years ago and told him she was ready to play. "She was a little eighth-grader and she told me she'd be playing for me," Eis said. "I told her, 'Yeah, if you make the team first.' She was pretty spunky and really believed she was going to make it. I remember that fondly." Fast forward to 2023. Clinton has made it. She's well on her way to a third straight season as a first-team All-SBC Lake Division pick. She's batting an eye-popping .676 (25 for 37) with seven doubles, one triple and four home runs. Clinton has driven in 19 runs and has struck out just twice. Sandusky, a young team with only three seniors, has won only three games this season. That means Clinton likes to push the issue when she's on base. During a game against Monroeville earlier this season at Dorn Park, she tagged up at third base and scored on a popup in the infield. She also scored from second base on a ground ball in that game. "Sometimes she's a little too daring, but Maleah's biggest thing is to get something going so the team will get hyped up and excited," Eis said. "Some kids can't self-motivate; they need something to happen to get them excited. She tries to do that. She goes all-out all the time." Clinton, who says her favorite play is catching a fly ball in center field and firing to home plate to cut down an unsuspecting baserunner, admits that she feels pressure to lead the Blue Streaks. "It gets hard to watch us make mistakes because we're better than that," she said. "When we're at practice everyone does amazing and sometimes it doesn't turn out that way in the game and it gets frustrating when we don't play to our full potential." Clinton, who could be a star for any team in the region, takes pride in wearing a Sandusky uniform. She talked about transferring to Huron before her freshman year because she played travel ball with many of the Tigers. Her mother, Melissa Salyer, vetoed that idea, and Clinton is happy where she's at. "I love being at Sandusky. From the background I come from, they don't expect me — period," she said. "From Sandusky, they don't expect me to be anything here. Where I go to school, where I live, nobody expects me to be good. I take that as a challenge: 'OK, now I have to show you.'" Clinton's mother died last year from cardiomyopathy at the age of 39. The teenager's support system rallied around her. "It was very sudden. I was (at school) when I found out," she said. "It made me have a bond with a lot of the teachers here and especially the policemen. When I found out, I was in the hallway and the policemen scooped me up." After her mom died, Clinton moved in with her aunt and uncle, Jessica and Mike Delk. They are now her legal guardians. "My uncle has been everything to me since my mom died," Clinton said. "Even before that they've always been there for me for softball. He always pushes me to be better. Even when I'm in a slump and don't want to play, he's like 'Get up, we're going to the field.' They push me to be better." The Delks, who went from having four boys (all adults now) to a teenage girl, didn't think twice about bringing Clinton into their home. "She was always at the house, every weekend hanging with us. It was like her comfort zone," Mike Delk said. "We love her, we want to do the best by her and let her be a kid. She handled it as well as anyone I've seen — young adult or older adult." The Delks and Clinton have adjusted. Mike calls Maleah a "girlie girl" and Jessica said she's "boujie on a budget." "She has a curfew and has never missed it since she moved in with us," Jessica said. "We never have to worry." The Delks enjoy watching Clinton play ball in the spring and summer. She has participated in travel ball for several years, most recently with the Wizards, a team based in Toledo. "I love travel ball so much," she said. "Everyone is on the same level; everyone is so good." One of her teammates with the Wizards is Clyde pitcher Maddie Dukeshire. The Wizards placed third at the 16U nationals last summer in Nashville and were ranked No. 1 in Ohio. Summer exposure can lead to college offers, and Clinton had a few. She will play next year for Siena Heights University, an NAIA program in Adrian, Michigan. "I really liked their facilities," she said. "They're close to home and they're giving me a lot of money for college, which was a big factor. I need a lot because I don't want to be in debt." Clinton is taking classes at BGSU Firelands and is already majoring in accounting and marketing. She'll play travel ball this summer before heading to college, honing her skills and expanding her game. Clinton, who bats third in Sandusky's order, also can bat left and slap hit, showcasing her speed. "I can slap. I can hit from the left, bunt or hit from the right. I feel like I can do it all," she said. "It's not like an experiment; a lot of people don't expect it." Clinton has even done some pitching this season, something that is in her blood. Her mom, aunt and grandma all pitched. Older sister Mariah was a pitcher at Fairmont State in West Virginia. She does it all with a little chip on her shoulder and a smile on her face. "She's always happy and positive on life and people in general," Mike Delk said. "(Jessica) put it in perspective: Even though the team's not doing well you gotta love the game more than winning." Clinton wants to leave behind a team-first approach when she graduates later this month. Eis said the softball seniors weren't friendly toward Clinton and her classmates when she was a freshman. That's something Clinton and fellow seniors Jaycie Rowe and Abbie Wade are trying to change. "The seniors this year vowed they would not treat the underclassmen that way," Eis said. "She helps out a lot of younger kids without asking. She's really positive; she's a great role model. If my best player is willing to sacrifice for the team, hopefully that will rub off on some of the younger kids. "We all know that she's athletic, but she's really matured as a person. I think she'll do big things away from softball. She'll be successful because she's driven."