Last week we revealed our top 2018’s and one of the top infielders on the list was a Florida shortstop who’s known for her defense and making MLB-type plays including one like her New York Yankee idol!

Take a closer look at this SEC-bound star freshman who has already achieved what she’s wanted to do since she was a little girl…

Name: AMANDA BEANE
Grad Year: 2018
Pos: shortstop
High School: Fletcher Sr. (Neptune Beach, Fla.)
GPA: 3.7
Club: Gold Coast Hurricanes – Fisher
Stats: currently hitting .472 and hit her first high school grand slam last Tuesday (Mar. 31).
College: Florida

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FullCountSoftball.com: There are a couple photos of you from a game at Rising Stars where you leaped over a runner and made a throw to first, like what you’d see in an MLB game! Do you remember that play and, if so, what were you thinking afterwards?
Amanda Beane: I was thinking, “I just made a Derek Jeter play!” I’ve always looked up to him.

FCS.com: You also play volleyball… is that where you get your hops? Seriously, compare the two sports in how they complement each other and what you like (and dislike) about each…
AB: I play basketball too so that helps as well, I guess, but I think its more of my athletic self coming out of me (laughs). But I like the fact that in volleyball you are non- stop moving no matter what which gets me going and gets me in shape for softball season. What I dislike is that spiking a volleyball is a totally different motion for my arm so I have to retrain my arm and thought process back to my normal softball throw.

FCS.com: Let’s talk recruiting… how did Florida come to find you, at a camp or through a recommendation? Were you always a Gator fan?
AB: I’ve been to a lot of their camps, even the overnight ones they had, and I happen to catch Coach’s eye (Tim Walton) which is a great feeling and, yes, my friends and I used to talk about all going to play sports at the University of Florida since we were nine years old.

FCS.com: Was there an “Aha” moment where you realized, “Hey, this is where I want to be!”
AB: Sitting in the Gators’ softball lounge talking to Coach Walton! I thought, “This is where I belong!”

FCS.com: What were your deciding factors in picking Florida? And when did you commit?
AB: The University of Florida has always been my first choice. They have a great coaching staff and I know that every player there is committed to the game. I verbally committed to Florida on December 11, 2014. I will always remember that day!

FCS.com: How did you tell the coaches, in person, on the phone, on an unofficial visit?
AB: Well, at first I went on an unofficial visit; then I called Coach Walton up two days later and made it official through the phone.

FCS.com: How far away will you be from home once you’re in Gainesville?
AB: I will be two and a half hours away from my home in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.

FCS.com: The scouting report on you is “great athlete with size, speed power and range with quickness on defense.” Anything else in your game your equally proud of and is there an area where you want to keep improving?
AB: I would like to keep working and get better on everything I do! But I think I’m most proud of just how far I’ve come in this game.

FCS.com: What’s been a top memory or two for you in your athletic career?
AB: Winning the World Series my first year of 10U! As well as just meeting a lot of my close friends out on the field playing the game we all love.

 

Quick Hitters

 

Where do you see yourself once playing softball ends?
Still something to do with softball or sports.

Fill in the blank… When I step onto the field, the first thing I think is:­­­­­­­­­ ___________
…. “We got this!”

What is the most pressing issue facing teens today in your opinion?
Self-confidence and drugs and alcohol… peer pressure.

Favorite color:
Blue.

Thing you wouldn’t be caught dead doing:
Sky diving!

If you were handed $1,000 and had to spend it in a day or lose it, what do you buy?
I would buy a batting cage to go in my backyard.

What’s something unusual or different about you that few know?
I use to be an avid vert skateboarder.

Describe yourself on the field in one word…. how about off the field in one word?
On the field: “Unstoppable.” Off the field: “Encouraging.”

If you were stranded on a desert island and could only take one thing with you, what would it be?
A good pillow!

Do you have any softball superstitions or rituals?
I don’t put my mask on until I get to my spot at shortstop.

What inspires you?
Crazy plays I see on TV or the internet!

What’s your “guilty pleasure,” something you hate to admit you love?
I kinda sorta like school.

Do you have a favorite phrase or motto?
“Believe you can and you are half way there.”

Best movie you’ve seen in the last year:
Insurgent.

If you had to cook a special dinner for someone what would it be?
Fettucini Alfredo.

What did you want to be when you were little?
A Florida Gator!

Favorite athlete:
Derek Jeter… always!

Nickname(s):
“Beane” or “AB.”

Something on your “must do” list:
Visit Hawaii.

What’s you No. 1 goal for the rest of the year?
Stay focused on what I need to do to get done!