MERIDEN — Remember that time last Halloween when Morgan Pelletier showed up for a fall ball game dressed as Patrick Star from SpongeBob Square Pants?

Full costume, life size.

Maloney softball coach Scott Aresco does. He was reminded the other day when Pelletier showed up for a team car wash wearing shark goggles and quickly turned the event into a spray-for-all.

"It was a really fun atmosphere," said Aresco. "I told the parents, 'Next year is going to be so boring without Morgan here.'"

Hopefully, the Maloney offense won't grow dull as well, though there is a chance it will, because Pelletier brings plenty of pop to that party, too. The most prolific power hitter in Maloney softball history, Pelletier has eight home runs this season and 20 for her career.

But it's more than that. Pelletier hits for average (.509 season, .436 career) and she hits in the clutch (103 career RBIs).

But, again, it's more than that. As Aresco alludes, Pelletier is the very heartbeat of the Spartans.

Which calls to mind the big-picture story of Morgan Pelletier that inspires far more than all those big stats. Pelletier's career, which saw All-State recognition last spring and will continue next year at Johnson & Wales University, was nearly derailed in 2021 by heart arrhythmia. 

Supraventricular tachycardia is the technical term for an irregularly fast or erratic heartbeat that affects the upper chambers of the heart. Pelletier described the episodes as feeling like her heart was beating out of her chest.

"My heartbeat was 230 beats per minute when it happened, and your average is like 180 when you're doing exercise," Pelletier recalled this week.

In October 2021, Pelletier underwent a three-hour cardiac ablation at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. Essentially, through a freezing process, coupled with scarring, abnormal electrical signals that cause atrial fibrillation are stopped.

“They kind of cryo-froze parts of my heart,” Pelletier told CT Insider at the time.

"It was very scary; I'm OK now," Pelletier said this week.

Recently, there have been echoes of the condition. Nothing major and in no pattern: "I could be running, sitting, it doesn't matter," Pelletier said. "It just happens."

To play it safe, Pelletier visited her cardiologist, got clearance to keep playing, and donned a heart monitor. She has another appointment with the cardiologist lined up for later this month.

"I started feeling it again, but I'm pretty sure I was just a little scared," Pelletier said. "It was a couple times and I had to put a monitor back on over this last month. Nothing really happened; it was just little murmurs. I just wanted to be safe with it because it wasn't a fun experience."

Melissa Pelletier, Morgan's mother, also suspects the recent activity is more cerebral in nature. 

"Prior to her having the ablation, I was really concerned; now I think it's anxiety," she said. "I always go with my gut, just reading her. She has super-high anxiety and I think that contributes to it and gets her nervous, because she knows that's kind of a precursor."

"For the most part (the ablation) did get rid of it," Morgan said. "I think it was just in my head a little bit when I got them recently. It's just I want to be safe than sorry. That's why I wear the monitor to make sure I'm OK."

Meanwhile, at the plate, Pelletier is once again very much OK after an atypical stretch of three hitless games. On Monday, she singled off Southington ace Madison Furniss and added a second single against reliever Angela Insogna.

"After the game I approached her and I just said, 'You're a really great softball player,'" Southington coach Davina Hernandez said of Pelletier.

"I was really impressed, I really was," Hernandez continued. "You know why? She was so athletic. She played second; she played third. She came in and got a hit off Maddie. Then comes in and gets a hit off Angie. Strong kid, very athletic."

The 10-7 Spartans, hamstrung by an injury to pitcher Stella Cicero, are in a 1-7 tailspin after a 9-0 start. They'll look to regain their footing Thursday afternoon in an in-town tussle at North End Field against Wilcox Tech, 13-1 and ranked No. 1 in Class M.

Pelletier goes into that game leading Maloney in batting average (.509) , on-base percentage (.591) and slugging percentage (1.127). She has team highs with 28 hits, eight doubles, a state-best eight home runs, and 32 RBIs.

She's a solid glove in the infield, primarily at second base, with no errors on the season.

Above all, she brings the right touch as team leader. There's no disguising that.

"Even though we haven't won a lot lately, she's still having fun and she's still making sure everyone on the team is having fun," Aresco said. "She just loves being together with the girls; she loves playing the sport.

"She loves being at practice," the Maloney coach added. "She always wants to hit more, have more ground balls hit to her, more pitches in the cage. She just wants to be the best that she can and she works at it all the time."