By Dave Krider
MaxPreps.com
Amanda Allen has carved out a niche as one of the most explosive power hitters in the history of high school softball. The Clay-Chalkville (Pinson, Ala.) senior center fielder recently completed her outstanding four-year career with 60 home runs, one short of the national record held by Holly Currie of Pisgah, Ala.
As an eighth grader, she was given the appropriate nickname of "Firecracker" after a friend accidentally exploded a bottle rocket in her hair. The moniker later was shortened to "Fire" and it became so permanent that some teachers did not know her real name until this year.
The stocky, 5-7 standout slammed four home runs as a late call-up from the JV squad during her freshman year. She hammered 19 as a sophomore, 17 as a junior and 20 in her final campaign. She hit No. 60 with 10 games left to play, but was unable to tie or break the record even though she went 10-for-22 (six doubles and four singles). She also drew six walks and was hit six times during that period.
The Alabama-Birmingham signee admits, "I had pressure from people around me and I was putting pressure on myself. It wasn't really a nightmare. I was excited about (possibly setting) a national record. Getting up to bat, I began thinking too much. I started trying to hit home runs."
Coach C.J. Hawkins calls the unsuccessful record pursuit "very disheartening. Nobody pitched to her. She was getting about one good pitch per at-bat. She is really shy and I think it really affected her negatively. She is such a team player. She doesn't care about her stats."
Statistician Wes Truitt adds, "She has got such a fluid, powerful swing. It's amazing how much power she generates. After she hit No. 60, it was like she (subconsciously) changed her swing. Instead of upper-cutting the ball, she started hitting line drives. In her next-to-last game, she had two upper-cuts for long fouls."
Allen can trace her long-ball development to having played baseball with boys as a very young girl. At age eight she began concentrating on softball, working with older brother Chris and her father, Gary.
Coach Hawkins was aware of Allen's home-run exploits on the JV team as a freshman, but she chalked them up to facing "bad pitching." However, she took the youngster on a spring trip and was "pleasantly surprised" to see her clout two homers, then two more before the season was finished.
That same year Hawkins asked Allen to be in her wedding. Hawkins designated her dog, MacGyver, as one of her bridesmaids and the young prot‚g‚ was given the honor of escorting her beloved lab down the aisle.
Hawkins soon found out that Allen had "a great swing. I don't touch it. It's scary. She wants to compete and doesn't care who we are playing. She doesn't care if she faces the other team's best pitcher. None of that bothers her. She can fly and is a stud on defense. She has got a rocket for an arm. She could play first, third or catch."
Allen has outstanding power to all fields. Hawkins recalled a home run blast during her junior year which hit a moving school bus between the high school and middle school. Her longest shot came this spring and soared approximately 280 feet - about 60 feet beyond the center field fence.
The Cougars' slugger has a tough mentality to go along with her athletic ability. She was hit by a pitch 17 times this year, 18 as a junior and 11 as a sophomore. She crowds the plate and admits, "If it's coming right at me, I'll take it. You'll have bumps and bruises for a few months, but it goes away."
This year she batted a lofty .513 in 61 games (the team was 44-18). She had 18 doubles, 20 home runs, 79 runs, 80 RBIs, 26 walks, struck out only 23 times and stole 13 bases in 14 attempts.
In her career she batted .434, with 60 home runs, six triples, 63 doubles, 214 RBIs, 216 runs, 64 walks and 85 strikeouts. She holds at least one state record - nine RBIs in a single game. All this was accomplished against top-flight Class 6A competition.
Off the field, Allen carries a 3.5 GPA with English being her favorite course. She plans to major in pre-med at UAB. In her spare time she works at the Hoover Recreation Center where she helps run softball and baseball tournaments.
"She's my first player (in 11 years) to get a full-ride to a four-year college," Hawkins says proudly. "It's going to be really sad. I was spoiled for four years. There will be some big shoes to be filled."
Baseball Notes
* Katy, Texas, ranked No. 1 in the nation by Baseball America, was eliminated in the state tournament by Langham Creek, 1-0 and 6-0, in the Class 5A region quarterfinals. Corey Maines and Matt Rein pitched the shutouts. Langham Creek, ranked No. 11, raised its record to 33-2 while dropping Katy to 32-5.
* Hokes Bluff junior lefty Tyler Stovall set an Alabama one-season state record with 227 strikeouts while fanning 16 in a 5-1 victory over Washington County. Stovall also tied a state record by posting his 18th victory (against one loss). Already a bright Major League prospect, he later was named MVP as the Eagles soared to their fifth consecutive Class 3A state title.
* In Oklahoma, Sperry junior right-hander Bobby Bundy struck out 21 en route to a 4-1 victory over Jones in a 12-inning Class 3A state semifinal. He also belted an RBI triple in the three-run 12th inning.
* Butler County (Morgantown) senior Keith Butler set a Kentucky record with his 43rd career pitching victory and has won twice since then. He has an 11-1 record with 126 strikeouts in 67 innings and a 0.82 ERA. A 6-0, 175-pounder, he also is batting a lofty .626 with six homers and 34 RBIs. He will attend Wabash Valley Junior College in Mount Carmel, Ill.
* Chatsworth (Calif.) senior shortstop Mike Moustakas didn't mess around when he connected for his state-record 22nd home run this spring. It soared over 400 feet as the Chancellors pounded Reseda Cleveland, 16-3.
* Over the past four years, Cabrillo (Lompoc, Calif.) pitcher Danny Duffy literally has grown into a big-time Major League draft prospect. As a freshman, Duffy stood just 5-4 and was lucky to throw 70 MPH. As a senior he is an overpowering 6-3 lefty who throws 94 MPH. He twice has struck out 17 batters this spring and boasts a 0.53 ERA.
Track Notes
* Papillion-La Vista senior Randal Carter set a Nebraska state high jump record with a prodigious 7-4 leap - best in the nation this year - at the Class A state meet. He attempted a national-record 7-5 «, but knocked the bar off with his right calf on the final attempt. Undefeated the last three years, Carter made his first try at every height until the record attempt.
* Long Beach Poly senior Bryshon Nellum lowered his nation-leading 200-meter time with a personal-best 20.58 during the Division I Southern Section championships. The Southern Cal-bound star also won the 400-meter dash and ran on two winning relays.
* Cheyenne Central senior Brendan Ames set two impressive records at the Wyoming state meet. He won the 110-meter hurdles in 13.73 seconds and the long jump at 24 feet, 6.75 inches. He also captured firsts in the 100- and 200-meter dashes to help Central win the team championship.
* Pahrump Valley senior Dominique Maloy - a 5-2 mighty mite - won the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes along with the long jump while leading her team to the Nevada Class 3A state title. She finished her four-year career with a Nevada-record 15 state championships.
* In Iowa, Tipton senior Ashley Miller set a state record with 15 career championships - seven individual and eight relay events. Called "the most decorated athlete in Iowa track and field history," she received a standing ovation from a crowd of 15,000. Shortly afterwards her 15 championships were matched by wheelchair star Tasha DeGroote of Aplington-Parkersburg.
Softball Notes
* Aledo, Texas, star Whitney Canion pitched a perfect game to stifle Dumas, 1-0, in the Class 4A region semifinals. She struck out the first 14 batters and 19 of the 21 she faced. She induced the other two to ground out.
* Mobile Baker set an Alabama state record with 79 victories (against seven losses). Baker defeated defending champion Sparkman, 5-1, to win the Class 6A state title as MVP Meghan Harbuck struck out 12. Harbuck (42-3) will attend Southern Mississippi.
* In Connecticut, Fermi-Enfield's Amanda Farnan pitched two perfect games in one day. She defeated Hartford Public, 7-0 and 9-0, with both going only five innings. She struck out a total of 19 batters.
* Ysidro Guzman has retired after 25 years as coach at his alma mater, Hayden (Winkelman, Ariz.). He compiled a 450-172 record with eight Class 2A state championships and four runner-up finishes.
Potpourri
* Highland (Salt Lake City, Utah) routed Jesuit (Carmichael, Calif.), 24-8, to win its 17th National High School Rugby Tournament. Fou Tuumaialu, a junior who came to the U.S. this year from New Zealand, was named MVP. Coach Larry Gelwix has compiled a 361-9 record in 32 years and has won all but six of the national tournaments.
* Edmond North is being hailed as the greatest high school golf team in Oklahoma history after winning the Class 6A state title by 27 strokes. North has won the last three championships and holds state records for 18 holes (21 under) and 36 holes (29 under). Oklahoma State recruit Kevin Tway - son of PGA Tour veteran Bob Tway - carded a 67-69-136 to capture medallist honors for the second year in a row. Teammates Geoff Shaw (142) and Ben Klaus (146) were second and third, respectively. All five golfers are expected to attend Division I colleges.
* Blake (Silver Spring) junior Danae Johnson won Maryland's all-around gymnastics title for the third year in a row. She edged sophomore teammate Nicole Williams, 37.80-37.075. Williams also was runner-up one year earlier. Johnson added titles in the vault and beam.
* Littleton Heritage senior Mark Dylla set a Colorado state swimming record by winning eight individual titles during his brilliant career. The University of Georgia signee turned in this year's fastest 100-yard backstroke clocking (48.75) in the nation. He won all 81 high school races, so it's no wonder he is being called the greatest swimmer in Colorado history.
* The undefeated Millard North (Omaha) boys soccer team has credentials to be ranked as the best ever in Nebraska after setting state records for victories (22) and shutouts (17). North defeated defending state champion Lincoln East, 4-2, in the finals.
* North Carolina's winningest football coach, Jack Holley of Wallace-Rose Hill, has retired with a 380-89-9 record in 39 years at four different schools. The 68-year-old legend did not win a state title, but he did field five runner-up teams.
* James vanRiemsdyk (Middletown, N.J.) was named April Male Athlete of the Month by the U.S. Olympic Committee. He was chosen as the best forward while leading the U.S. under-18 hockey team to a silver medal at the IIHF World Championships in Finland.
