We go all over the nation in today’s update as we profile a talent-ladden team from Tennessee — which has a player with the GREATEST name in softball history — as well as learn how a Kansas girl landed up on a California team due to a unique relationship.  We also profile a Texas gal staying home to play for her dream school and honor Throwback Thursday with a visit to the vaults as we look back to the day that a Team USA member committed…

 

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TEAM PROFILE: TENNESSEE FURY GOLD

There are coaches who get into softball because a daughter plays and after she’s done they stick around for years, even decades.

That won’t be the case for Kirk Lewis, the Head Coach of the Tennessee Fury Gold team—one of 12 teams in the Fury organization based in Chattanooga, Tenn.  After his daughter’s done, he’ll move on to watch his son play baseball.

Lewis began coaching softball when his daughter, Lauren, got into the sport at six years old. The coach had her playing in rec leagues for a couple years and then got into select ball managing the Frost Falcons “which grew a bit every year. We kept getting more and more competitive and decided that if we’re going to do it, we want to do it nationally.”

Several of his current players have grown up with Coach Lewis and this team, including Jordyn Hamill, who has played on his team since she, too, was six years old.

Lewis has been in the Fury organization for the last half dozen seasons and the level of success has gone up as his players have grown up.

When they were 10U, the Fury finished 13th at the ASA Nationals. They went to Moline, Ill. at 12U and finished fifth.

At the 14U level they took ninth when the girls were all age 13 and then second in Midland, Texas the next year (also at 14U).

This summer, playing at 16U, the Fury girls finished third at the ASA Nationals in Sunnyvale, Calif.

So what does he attribute the success on the field?

“It’s a combination of things,” he explains. “It’s all the hard work the kids put in along with how we travel the country to play the best competition. Equally important, the parents have bought into it and that’s made the difference.”

Playing against top national competition has also helped the players develop into college-level recruits.

“Initially we were just playing to win,” Lewis continues, “but along the way we’ve had every kid committed for over a year now. This has blossomed into college scholarships and it’s worked out good.”

Lewis was a pretty good athlete himself, having played third base for Auburn’s baseball team from 1982 to 1986.

“I was OK,” he defers, “our team was about .500. That was when Mississippi State was beating everybody and going to the World Series with Will Clark, Rafael Palmiero and Bobby Thigpen.”

To demonstrate what a small world it can be, Lewis’ brother, Corey, played football at Auburn and his first-year roommate was Richard Shea, head of the Birmingham Thunderbolts organization. Lewis says he frequently takes the Fury team to Birmingham—about two hours away—to play against the Bolts.

Today, the coach keeps busy when not on the field by helping run 62 Waffle Houses in the Eastern Tennessee and North Georgia areas. He co-owns them and is a partner in the restaurant business.

The Gold team will get another year or two out of Lewis who says he’ll probably hang it up once Lauren, a 2015 grad, heads to Kentucky.

Nothing against softball, the players or parents, he wants to just move on to the next promising athlete in the family, Landon, a 12-year-old baseball player who’s playing travel baseball nationally now as well.

“It can be tough,” Lewis laughs. “This summer when I was with the Fury in Calif. (at ASA 16U Nationals), my wife and Landon were down in Orlando, Fla. at the Elite 32 World Series. I’m looking forward to when we can all be together on one field at the same time.”

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Here’s a player-by-player look at the Tennessee Fury Gold team with comments by Coach Lewis:

— 2B Ashley Conner (2014, Tennessee-Chattanooga)
“Ashley is a great hitter and has a tremendous love for the game. The hardest worker on the team.”

— CF C.J. McClain (2014, Tennessee)
“C.J. has great speed and power and has all the tools to be an All-American in college.”

— SS Scarlet McSwain (2014, Tennessee)
“Scarlet is an outstanding athlete with good power and a great arm to go with great speed.”

— 3B Haley Andrus (2014, Kentucky)
“Haley is a power hitter who also hits for average.”

— OF Precious Birdsong (2014, Middle Tennessee State)
“Precious has tremendous speed, is a great defensive player and a great teammate.”

— SS Jordyn Hamill (2014, Tennessee-Chattanooga)
“Jordyn is an incredible defensive player with good speed. She was injured last season and did not look at any school other than UTC.”

— P Cori Jennings (2014, Tennessee-Chattanooga)
“Cori has pitched us to a runner up and third place finish at ASA Nationals. She’s a great competitor and shines in big games. She turned down visits to SEC schools as she only wanted to attend UTC.”

— OF Noelle Winkles (2014, Kennesaw State)
“Noelle is a tremendous outfielder with a great arm. She also hits for a high average.”

— UT Callen Griffen (2014, Tennessee Tech)
“Callen’s a very versatile player that can play any position and hits for average and with power.”

— 3B Devan Brown (2014, Kennesaw State)
“Devin has to be one of the best defensive third basemen in the country. She can also hit for average.”

— C Taylor Parker (2014, Tennessee/Chattanooga)
“Taylor is a great hitter and is strong defensively. She has always been a clutch hitter.”

— C Morgan Harris (2014, Middle Tennessee State)
“Morgan is a top-notch defensive catcher and a great leader. She hits for average and power too.”

— OF Haley Carter (2014, Georgia Southern)
“Haley is blazing fast and is an outstanding slapper. She covers a tremendous amount of ground in the outfield.”

— OF Lauren Lewis (2015, Kentucky)
“Lauren is a power hitter who also hits for average and has a strong arm from the outfield.”

— UT Halie Williamson (2015, Tennessee-Chattanooga)
“Haley can play anywhere on the field and excels at them all.”

 

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RECRUIT PROFILE: BRITTANY FINNEY

*** Brittany Finney is a 2015 pitcher from Wamego, Kan. who is committed to Oklahoma. How she ended up playing for the Explosion club team out of Tustin, Calif. is quite an unusual tale.

When Finney was in the seventh grade pitching for the 18U Olathe Rockets in the Boulder, Colo. tournament, she had one notable game against the powerful Corona Angels where she impressed several people, not least of whom was Bret Denio.

Denio was the Head Coach for the Explosion team and also was a correspondent writing for ESPN High School. In a tournament recap, he mentioned the performance of Finney.

“She was one of those kids who was a great athlete and in my review of all the games I pointed her out as a player to watch in the future.”

The next day, Denio was surprised to meet Finney and her grandmother face-to-face after the two asked around at the tournament about the coach/writer and where they could find and meet him.

“I stayed in touch with them as I was really impressed with them as people and offered any advice or help I could.”

Denio was surprised even more when the young pitcher and her grandmoher came up  to  watch his team play the next year. What really helped Finney’s stock rise, though, was a recommendation made in the pitcher’s behalf.

“I recommended Brittany to Derek and Joann Allister for their national OnDeck camp and she went as a ninth grader and her stock skyrocketed.”

Finney soon had major schools after her and ultimately committed to Oklahoma. But that wasn’t the end of the mentor-mentee relationship.

“I’ve always been in touch with them,” Denio explains, “and after Nationals this year they asked if she could play on our team (Explosion). It’s been a friendship and relationship over the years and I had joked with her several years ago about her playing in California. Brittany felt the time was right to do it. For us, it was a great opportunity to get a kid I love.”

A pitcher who can also hit, Finney throws in the 62-63 mph range and will pitch and play outfield for the Explosion.

“Brittany’s a big, strong player,” says Denio. “She doesn’t not get cheated when she gets her swings and in the circle she can throw harder and will. Most importantly, she’s a great kid from a great family with an excellent work ethic and is in one of the best shape of all the kids I’ve coached.”

 

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PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: KRISTEN CLARK

Kristen Clark is a talented 2014 pitcher who plays for the Texas Firecrackers Gold team and recently committed to the Univ. of Texas, where she’ll get to be with her sister, Amanda, who’s currently a freshman there.

Kristen is also a standout student with a 100.4 GPA to rank in the top 10% of her class.

We recently contacted her to ask about her Longhorn commitment as well as some other items… here are her comments:

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StudentSportsSoftball.com: Tell us about how your commit to UT went down…
Kristen Clark: I had routinely contacted Head Coach (Connie) Clark and her assistant coaches for a few years, but until the DIRT camp in September I had not made any commitment.

At the DIRT Camp I had the opportunity to talk with Coach Clark and her staff about playing softball at Texas. I explained to her my love for the school and how it had always been my dream to play softball for the university and I made the commitment!

 

SSS.com: You have some experienced coaches with the Texas Firecrackers in Connie May and Amanda Scarborough… what’s it like playing for them?
KC: I absolutely love working with Connie and Amanda! They are great resources and know so much about the game. Amanda Scarborough is an All-American pitcher that has been able to teach me so much about the mental aspects of the game as well as the physical aspect.

Coach Connie has been incredibly helpful with my batting and continues to help me make in and out-of-game adjustments. They are both great resources to college coaches around the country.

 

SSS.com: What’s been the highlight of your softball career so far?
KC: The highlight of my softball career is definitely when I was able to play in the 4A state tournament with my high school team (Forster High in Richmond, Texas) in June, and then a few months later, verbally commit to UT.

It has always been my dream to attend Texas and to make my dream come true is such a blessing. My most immediate goal is to attend the state tournament for the second time with my high school team and be named on the All State Team for the second time. My future goal is to be in the starting line up at Texas as a freshman.

 

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FROM THE ARCHIVES: JESSICA MOORE

Jessica Moore has had quite the year. Finishing her senior season at Oregon, she was the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year and a 1st team All-American before playing for Team USA this summer and helping win the Pan Am Qualifier in August.

On July 20, 2007, we ran a piece on Jessica committing to Oregon… here’s the write-up that we posted over six years ago!

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Jessica Moore, a 2009 P/SS with the Sorcerer Gold (Pete Aguayo), committed to the Univ. of Oregon on Tuesday after taking an unofficial to the Pac 10 school and being offered there.

According to Coach Aguayo, “Oregon (coaches) had been to three of our games in Colorado (Boulder tournament) and watched us at the Champions Cup. There, we set up an unofficial visit on Tuesday and that’s when she committed.”

Only 15 ½, Jessica will pitch and play outfield at Oregon.

“Before she started with us,” the Sorcerer coach says, “Jessica would’ve said her out pitch was her curve, but she’s got a great rise and drop and really knows how to move up and down and then mix in her change.”

A strong student with a 4.0 GPA at Sutter (Calif.) High, Moore went 19-5 as a sophomore with a 0.70 ERA. She had 283 strikeouts in 160 innings with 38 walks. But pitching isn’t her only strength—she hit .536 this spring with a .813 slugging average and knocked in 34 runs while scoring 38 herself.

Already a two-time all-league pick, her club coach says her strength is how she handles pressure.

“Jessica has unbelievable poise,” Aguayo continues. “When she takes the field, it’s not like she’s 15, it’s like she’s 20 years old. In person and in the circle she carries herself with poise.”

The Sorcerer team has eight players who are signed or committed already, including two others—twins Lindsey and Kelsey Chambers–who are going to Oregon.

“That was a big part of her liking Oregon,” the athlete’s mother, Tammy, told us today. “She’s become attached to them and we’ve had the opportunity to talk to their mom about verbal commitments and about the Oregon coaches.”

Jessica’s mother also says the teen fell in love with the state of Oregon when she traveled with the Sorcerers for the National Qualifier in Portland.

“Jessica has the maturity and experience of all of our kids,” believes Aguayo. “She can put a team on her back; she has their confidence and they have hers.”

“Another great thing about her is her amazing work ethic. Her parents are pretty much the same way—it’s the classic example of the apple not falling far from the tree. They have a family business (commercial concrete) and all work really hard… that’s where Jessica gets it.”

“Jessica really hits the ball well and pays shortstop as well,” Coach Aguayo explains.

The pitcher will travel to Gold Nationals in Oklahoma City in a few weeks with the Sorcerers Gold team coached by Phil Mumma.

As for beyond high school and college, Tammy says her daughter is undecided about what she wants to study, but “is potentially interested in coaching and giving back to the sport what everyone’s given her.”

 

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HOT 100 PROSPECTS: CLASS OF 2014 (Day 2)

We’re working on a list of the top senior prospects and will be announcing who we think are the top players in the ’14 class and are taking nominations.

If you’d like to put in a plug for a player, send in your info to us at brentt@studentsports.com.  We’ll take stats, honors, accomplishments, recruiting info, photos… whatever you got!

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If you’d like to submit information, forward to brentt@studentsports.com.  Also, follow us on twitter at @SS_Softball.