High school softball: Each state's greatest pitcher

California has been home to some of the greatest high school softball pitchers in the sports history, including Alicia Hollowell, Lisa Fernandez, Jennie Finch, Monica Abbott and Nancy Evans, but none of them are the greatest in the state's history. At least not according to our list of the the greatest high school softball pitchers from each state.

The honor of greatest pitcher from the Golden State goes to Michele Granger of Valencia, who set multiple national records while in high school in the 1980s and went on to college at Cal-Berkeley and did the same.

Who is the greatest softball pitcher from your state? Find out below.
Alabama
Anna Thompson, Grissom (Huntsville)
A two-time Gatorade State player of the year, Thompson eventually played at Auburn. She set the Alabama record with 2,322 career strikeouts including 657 strikeouts as a senior in 2006.

Alaska
Sabrina Jolin, South Anchorage (Anchorage)
A two-time MaxPreps Player of the Year in the state and three-time state player of the year honoree by Gatorade.



Arizona
Debbie Doom, McClintock (Tempe)/Corona del Sol (Tempe)
A 1981 graduate of Corona del Sol, Doom didn't actually play softball her senior year after transferring from McClintock because her parents did not move to Corona del Sol's district. Doom went to UCLA and set the national career ERA at 0.29, which still stands today.

Arkansas
Shelby Wise, Nettleton (Jonesboro)
A three-time all-state player, Wise holds the state record with 54 shutouts, 23 no-hitters and nine perfect games.

California
Michele Granger, Valencia (Placentia)
She qualified for the 1986 World Championships as a sophomore in high school and went on to play in the 1996 Olympics. She had 1,635 career strikeouts, 36 no-hitters and a 0.10 ERA. She also set multiple NCAA records while at Cal-Berkeley, including career no-hitters and senior season no-hitters.

Colorado
Rainey Gaffin, Legacy (Broomfield)
At standout in the circle and at the plate, Gaffin had a 52-3 record and 21 career home runs. She went on to play at the University of Tennessee. She was a two-time Gatorade state player of the year.

Connecticut
Rachelle Fico, Masuk (Monroe)
The all-time strikeout leader in Connecticut with 1,884 strikeouts in 775 innings. She had 26 perfect game, 47 no-hitters and 95 shutouts. She also had a career record of 105-3 and a 0.07 ERA.

Delaware
Rachel Gillen, Archmere Academy (Claymont)
Gillen earned state player of the year honors from Gatorade three years in a row and finished with a 69-10 record, a 0.31 ERA, 1,161 strikeouts and 25 no-hitters.



Florida
Kasey Fagan, Dunnellon (Dunnellon)
The daughter of San Francisco 49er Kevin Fagan (who was also her coach), Fagan twice earned All-American honors by ESPN Rise and was the Gatorade national player of the year in 2010. She had a 26-1 record as a senior.

Georgia
Geri Ann Glasco, Oconee County (Watkinsville)
The national player of the year by Gatorade in 2011-12, Glasco was 19-0 as a pitcher with a 0.50 ERA. She also batted .564 with 24 home runs as a senior.

Hawaii
Kamalani Dung, Kamehameha Kapalama (Honolulu)
Dung led the state in strikeouts and ERA and went on to pitch at Fresno State and Cal-Berkeley. She has played for the Puerto Rico national team at the Pan American Games.

Idaho
Casey Stangel, Lake City (Coeur d'Alene)
The MaxPreps National Player of the Year in 2013 and a three-time All-American by the NFCA, Stangel was also a three-time Gatorade state player of the year. She had a 75-2 record over her final three seasons at Lake City.

Illinois
Alexis Silkwood, Marquette Catholic (Alton)
A truly dominant pitcher, Silkwood had 100 shutouts out of 124 wins with 54 no-hitters and 1,907 strikeouts. She went on to a record-setting career at Mississippi State.

Indiana
Miranda Elish, Crown Point
The Oklahoma State All-American was the No. 1 recruit in the country by FloSoftball and she was a MaxPreps first team All-American. She earned Gatorade state player of the year honors three times.



Iowa
Jen Bice, Woodward-Granger (Woodward)
Bice pitched in the state finals five years in a row and finished her career with 2,175 strikeouts and 39 no-hitters. She had a career record of 179-18 and played at Iowa State..

Kansas
Allison Stewart, Olathe East (Olathe)
She was a three-time Gatorade state player of the year, including a 17-1 record as a senior with 156 strikeouts. She also finished her career as the state record holder with 168 career RBI. She went on to pitch at Arkansas.

Kentucky
Kirsten Allen, Ryle (Union)
The Oklahoma Sooner dominated at Ryle, throwing 41 no-hitters that included 11 perfect games. She had 80 shutouts and and notched 451 strikeouts as a senior.

Louisiana
Ashley Brignac, John Curtis Christian (River Ridge)
She led the Patriots to five straight state championships and finished her career with a national record 58 no-hitters. She had 1,454 strikeouts in her career and had a career mark of 122-4.

Maine
Hannah Hill, Fryeburg
Hill went 64-12 in her career with 912 strikeouts and also was a two-time Gatorade state player of the year.

Maryland
Megan Elliott, Calvert (Prince Frederick)
Led Calvert to a pair of state championships and was a four-time all-Met selection. She had 88 career wins with 1,345 strikeouts and 32 no-hitters.



Massachusetts
Shannon Smith, Milford
The University of Kentucky pitcher set the state record for strikeouts with 1,219. She also set a state record with 86 wins and added 25 no-hitters.

Michigan
Meghan Beaubien, St. Mary Catholic Central (Monroe)
A three-time Gatorade state player of the year, Beaubien was 100-11 in the circle with 1,442 strikeouts.

Minnesota
Sara Moulton, Eagan
Moulton earned all-state honors four times and was 83-13 with 1,142 strikeouts, a 0.35 ERA and 58 shutouts.

Mississippi
Aspen Wesley, Neshoba Central (Philadelphia)
A six-year varsity starter and a four-time Gatorade state player of the year, Wesley went 133-6 in the circle with a 0.48 ERA. she also had 1,666 career strikeouts with 66 shutouts and 25 no-hitters.

Missouri
Paige Parker, Truman (Independence)
Parker played on two national championship teams while at Oklahoma and ranks high on multiple statistical categories at the school. Led Truman to a state championship as a junior and was a four-time all-state player.

Montana
Morgan Ray, Frenchtown
The former Ohio State Buckeye was a three-time Gatorade Player of the Year and a MaxPreps All-American. She led Frenchtown to three state titles.



Nebraska
Jordyn Bahl, Papillion-LaVista (Papillion)
The MaxPreps Player of the Year in 2020-21, Bahl led her team to three state championships. She was 27-0 as a senior with 316 strikeouts and a 0.10 ERA.

Nevada
Brianne McGowan, Wooster (Reno)
A four-time state champion, McGowan was the Gatorade Player of the Year for Nevada as a senior. She went on to Oregon State where she earned All-American honors.

New Hampshire
Taylor Carbone, Alvirne (Hudson)
Carbone was a two-time Gatorade state player of the year and led her team to back-to-back state championships.

New Jersey
Michelle Smith, Voorhees (Glen Gardner)
While Smith set pitching records while at Voorhees, she went on to greater fame as a member of the Redding (Calif.) Rebels, winning four national championships. She also won a pair of Olympic Gold Medals.

New Mexico
Missy Martinez, Cibola (Albuquerque)
A 98-game winner, Martinez had 1,211 career strikeouts and a career 0.87 ERA. Tragically, she died of Covid at age 30 on Feb. 4.

New York
Danielle Henderson, Commack
An all-county with eight career no-hitters at Commack. She went on to set multiple records at UMass and played on the 2000 Olympic team that won the gold medal.



North Carolina
Crystal Cox, Central Cabarrus (Concord)
Cox struck out 1,455 batters and threw 37 no-hitters during her career. She had eight perfect games as a senior to set a national record. Played four years at North Carolina.

North Dakota
Brittany Rheault, West Fargo
West Fargo won four state championships with Rheault in the circle. She was a two-time Gatorade state player of the year and went on to pitch at Jamestown.

Ohio
Taran Alvelo, Bloom-Carroll (Carroll)
One of the all-time winningest pitchers at the University of Washington, Alvelo holds the Ohio record for wins with 108 and strikeouts with 1,515.

Oklahoma
Stacey Johnson, Putnam City North (Oklahoma City)
Johnson was one of the top pitching prospects in the nation as a senior in the early 1980s. She went on to multiple All-American honors at Louisiana Tech and posted one of the lowest career ERA's in NCAA history at 0.37.

Oregon
Ashley Birdsong, Taft (Lincoln City)
The starting pitcher at Bradley for four years, Birdsong went 77-14 in high school and was Gatorade state player of the year twice. She struck out over 1,300 batters and had 62 career shutouts.

Pennsylvania
Maggie Balint, Avon Grove (West Grove)
Balint struck out 1,322 batters in her career, earning state player of the year honors by Gatorade three times. She pitched at San Diego State.



Rhode Island
Kayleigh Lotti, St. Raphael Academy (Pawtucket)
Winner of multiple Pitcher of the Year awards in college at Hofstra, Lotti was a two time Gatorade Player of the Year winner while leading St. Raphael's to two state championships. She had a 0.00 ERA as a senior and 0.05 as a junior. She also had 29 career no-hitters.

South Carolina
Carlee Hoover, Daniel (Central)
A MaxPreps All-American and Gatorade Player of the Year, Hoover struck out 338 batters as a senior and had a 0.15 ERA.

Tennessee
Danielle Pieroni, Goodpasture Christian (Madison)
Pieroni led team to three straight state championships and never lost a high school game. She was twice the Gatorade state player of the year and a four-time all-state selection. Pitched in college at Tennessee.

Texas
Cat Osterman, Cypress Springs (Cypress)
One of the most decorated pitchers in softball history, Osterman was a four-time Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and a three-time Olympic Medalist. Named the national player of the year by Gatorade in 2001.

Utah
Nikki Anderson, Alta (Sandy)
Anderson holds multiple state records in Utah, including 37 consecutive strikeouts, 44 consecutive wins and 21 strikeouts in a game (which she accomplished twice). She had 71 career wins and 721 career strikeouts.

Vermont
Stephanie Frank, Essex (Essex Junction)
A two-time state player of the year by Gatorade, Frank led Essex to three state championships. She went 13-0 with 131 strikeouts as a senior.

Virginia
Brandy Bailey, Northside (Roanoke)
The owner of 31 no-hitters, a state record, Bailey also won 84 games and had 1,011 career strikeouts.



Washington
Samantha Skillingstad, Shadle Park (Spokane)
The only two-time Gatorade Player of the Year winner in Washington, Skillingstad went 28-1 as a senior while leading her team to the state finals. She also went 28-1 as a junior and led Shadle Park to a state championship.

West Virginia
Delani Buckner, Hoover (Clendenin)
A three-time state player of the year, twice by Gatorade and once by the West Virginia Sportswriters, Buckner had a 532-3 record and 664 strikeouts in her career, which did not include a senior season due to Covid.

Wisconsin
Syd Supple, Oshkosh North (Oshkosh)
Earned national player of the year honors from MaxPreps in 2019 after going 29-0 with 298 strikeouts. She is a three-time MaxPreps All-American and had 89 career wins.