"But after the surgery I thought there was no way I was going to start."

However, the freshman improved faster than she had hoped.

"I didn't expect myself to be hitting this well...it's been kind of surprising," Hartl said.

Initially, Hartl had difficulty handling her success.

"It was hard for me to feel like I was coming in and taking someone else's position," the catcher said. "But [my teammates] were so great. They gave me so much support."

But although Hartl has encountered much individual success this season, she is not satisfied with the team's performance.

"I don't think we're playing up to our potential. We played amazingly against Yale and really shook them up," Hartl said. "After that something happened. I'm not really sure why."

Although the team's recent slump is hard to figure out, one thing seems to be certain: with Kara Hartl behind the plate, success cannot be far away for the Crimson softball team.