July 8, 2004

Summertime for a softball player means traveling around the country with your club team in hopes of catching the eye of college coaches scouting every field and every game, even if it means 16 fields and 14 hours of softball a day. But for players who are already in college, or who have already signed with a school after landing a scholarship, the summer still means hitting the diamond, but itís in preparation for next season, not in hopes of selling your skills to a coach.

Several current, soon-to-be and even former Virginia Tech softball players are using their summers to hit the field to get ready for the Hokiesí first season in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Hereís a look at the Hokies in action this summer:

Allyson Campbell: Is playing for the Salem Scrappers 18U team on the weekends, working at second base. She also played on the Salem All-Star team that took on the U.S. Olympic Team, laying down a sacrifice bunt against Jennie Finch. During the week, she is volunteering in Memphis, Tenn., at St. Jude Childrenís Research Hospital, which is a center for research and treatment of catastrophic diseases in children, primarily pediatric cancers, that is run entirely off donations and costs $1 million per day to operate. She then flies or drives to her weekend tournament before returning to Memphis for her volunteer work.

Megan Evans and Callie Rhodes: Both are playing for StormUSA, located in California. Evans, the career home run leader continues to show her power out west. Several fields the team plays on doesnít have fences, so teams are now playing her deeper than would-be-fences and taking extra bases away from her. Rhodes is flashing the speed she used to steal a school-record 31 bases this past year. She is working in the outfield and already has numerous infield hits in just nine games. She is leading the team in batting average and stolen bases. Their team has already played the Chinese national team, who Evans went 4-for-4 against, and will play Venezuela and Australia this weekend.

Shanel Garofalo: Recently completed her eligibility at Tech and isnít playing this summer. Instead, she is working as an intern in the fashion department at MTVís Total Request Live (TRL). Garofalo broke four bones in her face in March, requiring her jaw to be wired shut. She went to the interview in New York City swollen and bruised, but still got the job.

Kelsey Hoffman: An incoming freshman from Florida who will fill several roles for the Hokies. She will help out with the catching duties and might also be asked to play third base. She is currently playing with the South Florida Lady Raiders, splitting time at first base and catcher. The team has played in showcase ó or exposure ó tournaments in Alabama, Florida and South Carolina and will be traveling to California to play later this summer.

Katie Maynard: Is pitching for the Ohio Dragons, a women's team back home in Ohio. She also was selected to play against the U.S. Olympic Team in June and threw a scoreless inning in relief. A rising junior, Maynard is already third all-time in career strikeouts with 362 in two seasons.

Karie Morrison: Is playing for the Salem Scrappers, leading them to a tournament title in Salem in June. She also hit the game-winning home run in the championship game. The rising sophomore been counted on for big innings in the circle for the Scrappers and hasnít disappointed, producing several strong efforts.

Alisia Narodowski: Is a junior college transfer from Lake City Community College who has just signed with Virginia Tech. The shortstop played last season at Lake City, where she was named second-team Mid-Florida Conference. She is currently playing with the Canadian Developmental Team and participating in the Canada Cup in Surrey, B.C.

Rachel Pacheco: Recently completed her eligibility at Tech and is playing this summer in a German professional league.

Whitney Radcliff and Stephanie Savre: Two incoming freshmen from California who will anchor the right side of the infield for the Hokies next season. Radcliff will be battling for the starting second base spot while Savre is the frontrunner at first base. Both are playing for the Southern California Athletics after playing for the Cruisers last summer. They participated in the Boulder Independence Day 18U Tournament last weekend, leading their team to the round of 32 after finishing third in their pool and winning two games in the single-elimination tournament. Savre showed the power she is expected to produce at Tech, hitting a big two-run home run early in the tournament in an 8-0 win over the Katy Express.

Angela Tincher: An incoming freshman pitcher with big expectations. Just six days after leading her James River High team to its second consecutive Virginia A state championship, she moved back three feet to throw against the U.S. Olympic Team in Salem. Although she gave up a home run to Jenny Topping, Tincher made noise by striking out cleanup hitter Stacey Nuveman on three pitches, then striking out Tairia Mims Flowers to end her inning of work. She is now playing for the Shamrocks organization, the same club team that produced current Hokies Kelly Brown, Caitlin Murphy and Sarah Prosise. Tincher helped lead the Shamrocks to a third-place finish at the Boulder tournament in the 80-team event.

Mindi Wylie: Recently completed her eligibility and is spending the summer back home in Canada playing for the Burnaby Oakeys, a junior womenís team. They have been playing in pre-exhibitions for the Canada Cup and took on the New Zealand national team recently. The Oakeys will play in a tournament in Portland, Ore., next week before heading to the nationals in Saskatoon. Wylie made her mark by playing spectacular defense at first base for the Hokies, but is playing primarily at third base and shortstop for the Oakeys. She plans on helping out as a student assistant coach next season for the Tech.