Colfax-Mingo’s Doty advances softball career at Upper Iowa University

Colfax-Mingo senior Kylie Doty earned a starting role for the Tigerhawk softball team during the summer of her eighth grade year.

She wasn’t playing out of necessity. Doty was just one of the best nine Tigerhawks on the roster.

“When you have a girl as an eighth-grader who doesn’t leave you any questions that she should be playing varsity, you know then that they are at a fairly elite softball level,” C-M softball coach Bryan Poulter said. “The talent level, skill and knowledge of the game was there back then.”

Doty was a four-time state medalist in girls wrestling but softball was always her first love. And a sport she desired to play for as long as she could.

She’ll get to play a little while longer after her senior season this summer following her decision to extend her career at Upper Iowa University.

“I feel like I can show my skills and show what I can do more than other sports,” said Doty, who held her signing ceremony at the high school on Monday. “I am excited to keep learning and keep building.”

Upper Iowa University is the only NCAA Division II program in Iowa. Doty chose the Peacocks over Iowa Lakes Community College and NCAA Division II McKendree University in Lebanon, Illinois.

“Upper Iowa has a great campus,” Doty said. “The people I met when I visited were so fun and easy to get along with. It was a great environment to be around.”

Doty was one of the best players in Class 2A the past two seasons.

As a junior, she batted .520 and had an on-base percentage of .560. She hit three homers, five triples and 14 doubles for a .850 slugging percentage.

Doty also scored 36 runs, tallied 35 RBIs, stole five bases and had a fielding percentage of .960.

She hit .540 and had an OBP of .577 as a sophomore. That season, she scored 29 runs, registered 34 RBIs and tallied eight doubles, two triples and six home runs. Her slugging percentage was 1.016 and she had a fielding percentage of .981.

At Colfax-Mingo, Doty has been pushed into a role as the team’s starting pitcher. She likely won’t pitch at Upper Iowa but is unsure of where exactly she fits into the Peacock roster. The coaching staff has her down as a utility player.

“She was a shortstop from the early days. If you can hit, they’ll find a place for you,” Poulter said. “It might be second base. It might be the outfield. (The coaching staff) sees what kind of hitter she is and that goes a long way in college softball.”

Doty batted .316, scored 31 runs and drove in 19 as a freshman. She batted .359, scored 29 runs and had 18 RBIs with nine doubles, two triples and one homer as an eighth-grader.

Doty is a four-sport athlete at Colfax-Mingo. Poulter feels like focusing in on just one sport at Upper Iowa can only help Doty’s development on the diamond.

“Coach Kiki Stoakes was an All-American at Nebraska,” Poulter said. “We’ve had good conversations and she fully supports multi-sport athletes and multiple-position softball players.

“Kylie will be able to fine tune some things as just a softball player. She’ll get a chance to be around others who will expand her game in a positive way.”

Doty is not sure what kind of opportunity she will get in her first season. The coaching staff is bringing in nine new players in the latest recruiting cycle.

The Peacocks are trying to clinch their first winning season since finishing 41-18 in 2016. They were 13-30 last year and are 2-5 so far this season.