As soon as McKenzie Bump went into the NCAA transfer portal, Kentucky softball coach Rachel Lawson knew she could be just what her team needed.

“We needed a left-handed hitter and top of the (batting) order hitter,” Lawson said. “We have good power, but we needed help at the top of the order. Finding a successor to (UK all-time hits leader) Kayla (Kowalik) has not been easy to do. She (Bump) is a very steady and great situational hitter. She has also embraced being a Wildcat, which I love.”

Bump had a successful four years at Ohio State. Last year she hit .336 with five home runs, six doubles and 24 runs scored. She also was 7-for-7 on stolen bases.

“I am very competitive. It definitely comes out even sometimes when I try to hide it. I have a lot of siblings so my whole life has been competing to try to win. And when I don’t, I’m not always the best loser,” Bump said.

Bump had always respected Lawson after playing against Kentucky and also wanted to play in the Southeastern Conference, a much more competitive conference than the Big Ten.

“To compete against the best of the best is what I always wanted to do,” Bump said. “Coach Lawson has really helped my mental game and I have never had a coach believe in me like she does. She believes in me more than I believe in myself.

“I think that that’s something that really stands out for me. I like the confidence she puts into me that I can’t put into myself. When you’ve got a head coach like coach Lawson, it’s hard not to be fearless.”

Kentucky has a relatively young, inexperienced team to battle talented SEC teams and that’s why Bump’s experience appealed so much to the Kentucky coach.

“She is very, very good at building people and building their talent. She also makes us work super hard, which I have really valued as well,” said Bump, who went 3-for-3 and drove in a run in her first SEC game.

Bump believes the overall competitiveness on the team has benefitted UK already and will keep doing so.

“I think that we push each other even outside of softball,” Bump said. “The more you know that teammates have your back, the better the team is. We all have a really strong bond outside of softball. We’re always joking around and just enjoy the game.

“I think my experience is very helpful. I think that the freshmen really look up to me, even though me being new they took me in as their own right from the start, which I really appreciated.”

Bump was at the softball media day in February when an emotional Lawson admitted she had to not be so loyal to veteran players and embrace the transfer portal and more roster turnover each year to stay competitive.

“I think that coach Lawson is a winner. I’ve always looked up to her. I remember in sixth grade, I was like, ‘That woman is amazing.’ To play for her now was literally my dream,” Bump said. “I see her every single day in practice and she’ll do anything to win. Doesn’t matter what it takes, and she pushes everyone to come with her. That’s one thing that I really value in her.”

Kentucky started SEC play last weekend at home against Missouri and will play at LSU this weekend.

“The Big 10 was always super special to me, but my biggest dream ever was to play for the SEC and for coach Lawson to give me that chance was everything I could ask for,” said Bump, who hit .361 in her first 20 games at UK. “I am so excited to see what lies ahead for me and our team.”

•••

Kenny Brooks had coached championship teams at both Virginia Tech and James Madison before coming to Kentucky this season. Yet he says he may never have had a more enjoyable season than this one. Kentucky is 22-7 going into NCAA Tournament play next week.

“This is right up there if not the best year, just because, collectively as a group, everybody just works together. They’re fun,” Brooks said. “I laugh and joke about sometimes I was scared I was going to jinx myself. But they’ve never been late to a meeting. They’re always there.

“Whether I try to surprise you, to get there 10 minutes early, they’re there and they’re ready to go. So when you have that type of mentality, good things are going to happen.”

This is his fifth year with All-American point guard Georgia Amoore, who leads UK in scoring (19.1 points per game) and assists (199). Amoore was named SEC Newcomer of the Year and has even surprised Brooks this year.

“I’m watching her do things I’ve never seen her do before,” he said.

He marveled at the way Amoore, a first-team all-SEC pick by the league coaches, let the “game come to her” at South Carolina rather than being in full attack mode.

“That’s leadership and maturity. But she can do that because she has so much confidence in these kids,” Brooks said.

He brought Clara Strack with him from Virginia Tech and has seen his sophomore center blossom this season into a scoring (15.2 points per game) and rebounding (9.7) star. He has watched her “grow right in front of my eyes” all season and she was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year.

“I think she’s going to learn from Georgia and take over a leadership role next year. But you know, it’s just been fun for me all year coming to practice with this group,” Brooks said. “They’re resilient. They’re fun. This has probably been the least amount I’ve raised my voice all year as a coach.”

South Carolina has dominated the SEC under coach Dawn Staley and should be poised for another big NCAA Tournament run. However, she has been impressed by what Brooks has done at Kentucky in his first season.

“He’s got a really talented squad. They got chemistry, they work well together, and they got a really good point guard,” Staley said. “When you got a point guard that can distribute a basketball, that can create her own shot, that can knock down 3s, that can read defenses – I mean, she puts people in great positions to just have to make a basket. And when you have a leader like that, it’s going to give you opportunities to win a lot of basketball games.

“(I’m) super happy for Kenny for making our league a better league because it’s not easy. It’s not easy at all, and it’s only getting harder and harder to win basketball games in our league.”

•••

Sophomore Creslyn Brose and senior Hailey Davis have both had superb seasons and been big reasons Kentucky has been ranked among the top 10 gymnastics teams nationally all season.

Both had similar starts to their gymnastics careers as youngsters.

“I used to flip around the house when I was younger, and my mom thought that maybe that was a little dangerous to be flipping off the couch so she put me in gymnastics,” Brose said. “I started with mommy and me classes when I was like 2, and then I took a break for a while and was doing soccer.

“But then I decided to choose gymnastics after watching the Olympics. I don’t remember exactly which one, but I fell in love with it immediately.”

Davis said her story was similar except she had a sister three years older who was taking gymnastic classes.

“She would come home after her classes and would try to spot me on back handsprings and back tucks and stuff. My parents decided this is a little dangerous, so let’s put her in gymnastics,” Davis said. “I also started with the mommy and me classes because I was 2. I just stuck with it ever since and fell in love with it.”

Kentucky gymnasts interact with hundreds of fans, mainly young girls, after every home match, and Brose had a lot of them waiting for her last week after scoring a perfect 10 on floor exercise – her third straight win on floor – against Arkansas in the team’s final home match.

“Honestly, it’s like one of my favorite parts of the night. I look forward to talking to all of them,” Brose said.

She has girls who were in her summer camp group wait to get her autograph along with others she’s also seen at previous meets.

“It’s honestly great to see both familiar faces and new faces both,” she said. “I love kids, and I love interacting with kids, so it’s really fun. I try to talk to all of them.”

Davis is the same way. She doesn’t want any child to leave Memorial Coliseum without an autograph if they want one.

“I feel like they come there and they support us, and I remember being that little girl coming to those meets and looking up to the college gymnasts,” Davis said. “I feel like that’s the least we could do is go and give them a little bit of time. I try my best to also talk to as many of them as I can.

“A lot of those girls come to the meets year after year. They come to every single one of them, and I’ve started to recognize them and form relationships with not only them but also their parents. I think that it makes the experience better for them. It makes it easier when they say, ‘Hey, do you remember me?’ And I actually do because I talk to them and that’s something I think we will always do.”

•••

Kentucky men’s basketball coach Mark Pope knows there is one thing he does not have to worry about with freshmen Trent Noah, Travis Perry and Collin Chandler in postseason play.

“My three young guys are not lacking in confidence. They are not lacking boldness,” Pope said.

He said they were “brilliant” in UK’s win at Missouri when they combined for 14 points — and made four 3-pointers. He likes the way they “trust what we do, maybe better than anybody” on the team.

However, UK Radio Network analyst Jack Givens warns they are still freshmen even if they have all played in 19 games or more going into postseason play.

“When people say they are not freshmen, let’s go back to last season and look at Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham and see the way they performed in the SEC and NCAA tournaments,” Givens said, knowing that UK lost its first game in both events.

Dillingham and Sheppard were both top 10 NBA draft picks, but were not as good in postseason play as they had been during the season.

“They struggled in the postseason. If Kentucky can figure out a way to get 10 or more points from those three freshmen the rest of the way, they will be great,” Givens said. “It takes pressure off so many other guys on the floor because now they have to respect those three freshmen when they make shots. If you can get a combination of 10-plus points out of those three guys, Kentucky can be really good the rest of the way.”

Givens believes Chandler hitting a 3-pointer just before the end of the first half at Missouri was a confidence builder. He liked what Perry did after getting a shot blocked at the basket at Missouri.

“Instead of hanging his head, he cut in front of the offense, got the steal and got the ball to Amari Willams for a dunk,” Givens said. “That is a productive play from one of these young guys that will be so important down the stretch for this team, but even with the experience they have they are still freshmen going into postseason play for the first time.”

Junior Otega Oweh, UK’s leading scorer, believes in his freshmen teammates.

“The past month our roster has fluctuated because of injuries and the young guys had to grow up quick,” he said. “They have been able to play and contribute and feel comfortable out there, so that when we need them in tournament play they know what to expect and I am confident they will deliver.”

•••

Quote of the Week: “If I didn’t like this style of coaching, and if any of the offensive linemen didn’t like this style of coaching, especially the transfers, you made a huge mistake in coming here because that means you didn’t do your due diligence and you didn’t examine your options,” Arkansas transfer Josh Braun, on UK offensive line coach Eric Wolford.

Quote of the Week 2: “Hopefully their DNA as players will continue to run through this team. They’ll leave a lot of DNA with the guys that will be here next year. I think it will be with us for a long time in this program,” freshman guard Collin Chandler, on the impact UK’s six seniors have had on the team.

Quote of the Week 3: “These fans, they’re the best in the world. The whole state is behind us and they love us and support us. So many fans, so many genuine people that just really want to see us do great. They have our back. It’s just been a great experience,” Kentucky forward Ansley Almonor, on UK fans.