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The Indiana Daily Student

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Transfer Aimilia McDonough finding groove in second season with IU

When IU junior utility player Aimilia McDonough isn’t catching fly balls in the outfield, she’s likely playing catch with a bag of gummy worms.

For the second consecutive year, McDonough lives with junior infielder Taylor Uden, and the pair is known for its candy-throwing habit. This habit developed last season when McDonough shared a basement bedroom with Uden.

McDonough’s candy-fueled bouts appear to have elevated her play this season. She leads the team with a .348 batting average and is one of three players with a perfect fielding percentage.

However, her path to IU was anything but s
traightforward.

An all-state softball selection at Notre Dame High School in St. Louis, McDonough was recruited to Mississippi by then-associate head coach and St. Louis native Mike Perniciaro.

“We know the same people in the St. Louis area, so when I was at Ole Miss, we recruited her heavily,” Perniciaro said. “She can hit with power, she can run, and she plays good defense.”

Perniciaro left Ole Miss in July 2014 to become an assistant to IU Coach Michelle Gardner, whom Perniciaro has known for 18 years.

After spending one season with the new Ole Miss coaching staff in 2015, McDonough requested her release and followed Perniciaro to IU.

“I love Pooch and always wanted to play for him,” McDonough said. “He was the main reason I came here.”

Perniciaro didn’t expect McDonough to come to IU. However, Perniciaro said it was a pleasant surprise for the stars to align and lead her to the IU program.

“I told Michelle, ‘We got a player who could be a game-changer for us,’” Perniciaro said. “We went after her, and it’s worked out great.”

Once McDonough transferred to IU in June 2015, she needed a place to stay.

“Taylor was nice enough to share her room last year so I wouldn’t have to live with random people, which helped so much,” McDonough said. “It just helped me acclimate a lot better.”

Part of McDonough’s transition to IU was learning how to play with her new teammates, who have welcomed her into the team.

Away from the field, McDonough’s bond with Uden grew stronger. With Uden originally from Arizona, both players know what it’s like to be away from family for an extended time.

“The junior class in general is from all over the country,” Uden said. “We’ve built this really tight bond, and it’s been a lot easier to make adjustments because of that.”

Uden said she and McDonough lean on each other regarding academic and athletic issues. This means taking time to jump around on their beds, McDonough said.

“She is a firecracker,” Uden said. “I’m always surprised by the things she does.”

As McDonough has adjusted to life in Bloomington, she has begun to use her experiences at Ole Miss as a way to teach IU’s underclassmen.

“The upperclassmen were what got me through my freshman year,” McDonough said. “I find myself able to kind of mentor the freshmen here.”

Consistency has been the key to McDonough’s 
offensive performance this season. By not having to adjust to both a new program and a new social environment this past offseason, McDonough said she felt better when it came to her on-field preparation.

Since recording eight hits during the five-game Samford/UAB Tournament in February, McDonough has become an everyday player for the Hoosiers.

Both McDonough and Gardner credit this consistency with helping McDonough stay comfortable when 
hitting.

“I think she’s just gotten into her comfort zone,” Gardner said. “Sometimes it just takes an adjustment.”

One thing that remains unchanged for McDonough this season, though, is her walk-up music.

While she has retained the song “Milkshake” by Kelis for some of her at-bats, McDonough is also using a remix of the theme song from the TV series “The Office” for other trips to the plate at Andy Mohr Field.

“I can’t take myself serious anymore to have a serious walk-up song,” McDonough said. “It’s pretty funny.”

This carefree approach is one of the qualities that endears McDonough to her teammates, including Uden.

“I love her to death,” Uden said. “That’s why we’re still rooming together two years later.”

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