By Craig Morgan, thesundevils.com Writer
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Breanna Macha won't have to look far for inspiration when she takes the mound for the Sun Devils softball team. Inscribed on her mitt are the words: "Give it your all."
It's a simple message her mom delivered before Bre took the hill for games at Mesa Red Mountain High School, or in club ball. Nobody knew more about giving it their all than Jane Macha.
"She taught me to be the person and player I am," Bre said.
Jane Macca was diagnosed with brain cancer when Bre, the youngest of four daughters, was 6 years old. For 12 years Jane fought the disease so she could be there for her husband and four girls, hoping against all odds that she would see them all through high school.
"She was always at our games until she couldn't be," Red Mountain coach Rich Hamilton said. "She'd always watch in the same place and she would always smile at me. I think it was a release for her and I admired her for coming out; how strong she was just to be there."
Nobody had a better sense of her mom's strength than Bre. She was the boots on the ground for her mom's battle.
"Numerous surgeries, chemo, radiation and the gamma knife -- I would drive her to the doctors appointments so I knew exactly what she was going through," Bre said. "We always knew that one day would come and after her fifth surgery she had a seizure so they said they couldn't do any more operations.
"They said that when it came back again it would be the last time but I think by the time I got to my senior year I tried to believe that she had fought it off all those other times so she would do it again."
Jane Macha died on April 17, 2014 -- 30 minutes before Red Mountain was scheduled to face Gilbert High. Nobody would have blamed Bre if she had skipped that game, but after talking it over with her dad, Bill, and her coach, she decided pitching was exactly what she needed to do.
"My mom taught me to be so strong so I didn’t want to give up for my team," she said.
Red Mountain lost that emotion-charged game in extra innings. When Bre walked off the mound, the weight of her world came crashing down upon her.
"After we lost that game, I ended up going to a spot where she took us growing up; a pond at Red Mountain Park where we would feed the ducks," Bre said. "I just reminisced on everything and cried and cried and cried. I didn't go home for three or four hours. My dad was calling me and my sister was texting me. I just didn't want to be around anybody; I couldn't."
With her mom serving as inspiration, Bre regrouped again. One month after her mom died, she led the Mountain Lions to their fifth straight state title and her fourth in four years at Red Mountain.
"I had set a goal in eighth grade to win four state championships and I couldn’t have done that without my team because we had amazing girls that came out of that program, but it felt so good to win that last one," Bre said. "It meant more."
Bre turned in a promising freshman season at ASU in which she helped the Sun Devils reach the regional round, where they fell to national semifinalist LSU in a third and deciding game in Baton Rouge.
Determined to learn from and build upon that season, she spent the offseason focusing on adding more spin and movement to her pitches -- a focus that pitching coach Letty Olivarez said is already apparent as the Devils prepare to open the season Feb. 11 vs. Utah State in the Kajikawa Classic.
"I don't have a sense of her upside because I have seen her jump so much in such a short period of time that I don't know what's ahead," Olivarez said. "Honestly, she surprised me that she was able to make those changes so fast. She has this mentality of always wanting to get better.
"There's certainly pressure for her to be great in this program with its history, but she's always had that fame and success so she's used to that pressure. She understands what it's like to be in that position."
Bre said staying home to play at ASU has helped her cope with her mom's loss because her family and friends are near by. She still honors her mom by going to Jane's favorite restaurant, Red Lobster, on the 17th of every month. She also bought a pit bull terrier mix named Tank for companionship, and she beams with anticipation when talking about the upcoming season.
"I still have moments where it hits me that she's gone and I never know when they're coming," Bre said. "My family is very supportive but it’s not the same when your mom is gone and you can't talk to her any more.
"I miss her so much. All I can do is try to remember the things she taught me. I've got to be strong for her."