Your position in the batting lineup affects 2 things. Pride and # of AB's. Both of which are insignificant in the grand scheme of things. How many more AB's would she have if she were batting 5th in 25 games? Not enough to go to the coach about when you look at the big picture I can assure you. An extra 20 AB's will not be the difference in her lettering or not nor will it be the difference in her playing P5 softball versus D3.
Just sit back and enjoy the ride. It's over too fast to be worried about a few extra AB's.
you missed one, confidence. in fall, she struggled, lost some confidence. she worked hard, improved her hitting relative not only to herself, but to several other players on team, and the result was . . . if she moved up a couple of spots, her confidence would improve even more, and it might light a spark undeer some of the others.
maybe now that SB is only sport ("winter" sport just ended, thanks covid), maybe coach will see her more often at practice as well as how she hits in games, it might change things.