By Dave Krider
MaxPreps.com
The Streak dwarfs even the great Joe DiMaggio, who holds one of professional baseball’s most untouchable records – hitting safely in 56 consecutive games.
Well, it may not be baseball, but Landon Warren’s 75-game hitting streak in softball is a national record that more than likely will join the “untouchable” list. The Broughton (Raleigh, N.C.) senior shortstop collected at least one hit in every game during her four-year career until being shut down during a recent 13-0 loss to Wake Forest-Rolesville.
The record – left far in the distance – had been 46 games by Natalie Johnson of Burlington, Iowa, during the 1999-2000 seasons.
Quite frankly, the 5-foot-7, 135-pound North Carolina State University recruit could care less about the record. “Oh, man, it’s over – big deal,” she said to MaxPreps. “I didn’t even know about it before this year. There was no pressure whatsoever. I didn’t even keep track of it.”
Broughton coach Dorrian Stephens may have been the one who was most relieved when The Streak ended. He conceded, “The record almost had become bigger than our program.”
To be officially put in the record books, however, The Streak must first be okayed by the North Carolina state association and then by the National Federation. The recognition is being slowed down for two reasons: (1) her freshman scorebook was thrown out when the gymnasium was renovated and (2) an opponent from her sophomore year gave an error on a play in which her home scorekeeper gave a hit. The home team, though, always is official in this type of situation. Even without her freshman year she had enough games to surpass the previous record.
On the state level, Warren already has set a North Carolina career record with 25 home runs. She also is expected to set a state record for career batting average when this season is completed.
“There has never been a hitter like her in North Carolina,” says Tim Stevens, longtime prep sports expert at the Raleigh News & Observer. “She has some power. She slaps it around, has great wrists and can really run.”
Hitting a ball apparently is in Landon’s blood because her grandfather, Wiley Warren, was the Atlantic Coast Conference baseball batting champion in 1952 and his Wake Forest team won the bronze medal in the Pan American Games. Her father, Jeff, and uncle, Mike, both played baseball at Broughton.
Landon has a batting tee and net in her backyard. In addition, she works part-time at Grand Slam USA, a 22,000-square foot facility where she can hit until her hands bleed – which they usually do.
“I just hit every day – every single day,” she says matter-of-factly. As Landon Warren sees it, hitting a softball is just as much a part of life as breathing.
To truly qualify her art, Warren doesn’t just hit a softball – she attacks it. She explains simply, “If you don’t swing hard, it’s not going to go very far. You let your bat do the talking and my bat has got a big mouth, I guess,” she adds with a laugh.
Stephens points out, “She has very good eyes. She can pick up the spin on a ball out of the pitcher’s hands. She’s one of the few girls who goes up to attack the ball – not to just hit it. The bat is an extension of her body. What I think is a decent game offensively, Landon looks at it as average.
“I’ve coached a lot of football. I can’t think of anybody at the high school level whose work ethic has been so strong for four years. She’s one of our best base runners and has a really strong arm. She’s a third coach at times.”
Which brings us to, perhaps, her greatest value: inspirational team leader. Stephens notes, “She’s not going to allow any type of dissension. She stays away from conflict. She can mend problems on the team because all the players look up to her. A model teammate – that’s Landon as well.”
Her inspirational idols are New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter and deceased North Carolina State University basketball coach Jim Valvano. Since age 10, her nickname has been “Jeter,” and that’s not a big stretch because she plays the same position, is a great hitter and leader.
As a very young girl, however, she was not an instant (pardon the pun) hit. Playing T-ball at age five, she “tried to hit the ball and it didn’t go anywhere. We have videos. So I don’t think I was a natural. (Over the years) I’ve tried at least 20 different types of hitting machines. I wouldn’t even say I’m a great hitter now,” she said modestly. “I get so mad at myself. I’m never satisfied. My hands are bleeding right now.”
Her T-ball misadventures continued while playing first base. The players had not yet been taught how to catch pop-ups, because very few are hit at that level. Naturally a pop-up came her way. “All I remember was seeing the white of the ball,” she said, “and I got hit square on the nose. I wanted to cry, but my dad came out and said, ‘Don’t you cry.’ (No crying in baseball – or softball – according to Tom Hanks.) There was a lot of blood. He got a towel and made one quick wipe.”
One of her pleasant memories at age five, however, was kicking a soccer ball around with famous singer Rod Stewart. Her dad got the family backstage passes for a local concert and though she didn’t realize how big the singer was at the time, she now has a story to tell her children some day.
When she moved to the recreational league, Landon was coached by her father, Jeff, who pointed out, “From the time Landon was born, she had a ball or bat in her hands and didn’t want for anything. The best part is that she always has kept her head on her shoulders.”
Her grandfather Warren was the biggest “spoiler,” once buying her $400 worth of softball equipment during a single shopping trip.
At the tender age of eight, Landon faced some trauma which probably helped her reach today’s great heights. Jeff Warren explained, “The bases were loaded and she struck out. The (opposing) coach ran out on the field (celebrating) and scared her. She cried (because she thought he was yelling at her). That really bothered her. From that point in time, she started working really hard.”
Not being challenged in the recreational league, Warren was urged by a neighbor, Charlie Dobbins, to play travel ball when she was nine years old. Dobbins, who is the head softball coach at Peace College in Raleigh, recalled, “You could tell right away that all the athletic ability was there. She was raw, but she was like a sponge. She was the best player on the field, but her potential was so much higher.
“Her swing is a controlled force. She’s trying to hit a line drive through the box every time she comes up. Technically, she is as good as anybody I’ve seen. She’s also very proficient at self coaching. She has the tools to go in and be successful in the North Carolina State program next year.”
When she was 10, Warren’s travel team, the Challengers, placed third in the Pony Nationals. “The trophy was bigger than I was,” she pointed out. In later years she joined the Dominators, who took fifth two straight years in national ASA age-group tournaments.
As a Broughton freshman, she “was really nervous” and had no idea she would be an instant starter as a shortstop and leadoff hitter. “She was one of our strongest players,” Stephens pointed out. “She was a very fundamental player and helped our team reach the state (Class 4A) playoffs for the first time.”
Warren estimates that she batted around .600 and belted six home runs as a freshman. Reaching the state playoffs still is one of her greatest thrills. She calls it “bittersweet,” because the Capitals lost their first game, 3-1, to Greenville Rose. “Our seniors were crying,” she said. “They were all good girls. We played so hard and got beat.”
As a sophomore, she batted .534 with six home runs. She scored 15 runs and stole nine bases. During her junior year, she batted .615 with 10 home runs. She scored 21 times and stole 12 bases. So far this spring she is batting a lofty .700 with three home runs, 24 runs scored and 12 stolen bases.
Warren carries a perfect 4.0 GPA in the classroom. She particularly enjoys math and anatomy. She claims her favorite hobby is “eating.” She especially likes Mexican food. She also likes to play tennis (she gave up serious tennis as a youngster because she would have to wear frilly outfits) and basketball.
It would have been a shock had she not chosen home town North Carolina State, because “I’ve always been a State fan since I was little. I knew their fight song when I was five years old.”
Warren especially wants to work on getting stronger for college competition. But her powerful work ethic demands that she improves in every facet of the game. As she puts it, “There’s always something that happens that I could have done better.”
Wolfpack coach Lisa Navas says she will have openings next year at not only shortstop, but also second base and the outfield. She calls Warren “a great contact hitter and quick. We’re expecting a lot out of her.”
When Warren enters North Carolina State in the fall she plans to major in sports management with the goal of becoming a college softball coach.
“I don’t think I can give that (the love of her sport) up,” she laughed.
