Local softball pitcher Monica Abbott hopes to lead Team USA to
Olympic Gold
She’s arguably the greatest pitcher in softball history. In
fact, one would be hard pressed to find a single NCAA Division I
pitching record that doesn’t have the name Monica Abbott etched
next to it.
This summer the former left-handed pitching sensation at North
Salinas High School and the University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers
will represent the United States at the Olympic Games in Beijing,
China.
Local softball pitcher Monica Abbott hopes to lead Team USA to Olympic Gold
She’s arguably the greatest pitcher in softball history. In fact, one would be hard pressed to find a single NCAA Division I pitching record that doesn’t have the name Monica Abbott etched next to it.
This summer the former left-handed pitching sensation at North Salinas High School and the University of Tennessee Lady Volunteers will represent the United States at the Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
“I found out in September that I made the top 18. When I first heard the news it was like oh my gosh, this is crazy,” Monica Abbott said. “It is so overwhelming. With all of the happiness that came with it, I also felt like I had a lot of work to do.”
And that work, which is to mow down as many international players as possible, has, up until now, come easy for the 6-foot-3 All-American pitcher, who is known for hurling moving and rising fastballs that scream across the plate at upwards of 74 mph.
During her four-year stint at the University of Tennessee Abbott racked up pitching awards and accolades the likes of which no Division I program had ever seen. And by the time she graduated last May she laid claim to just about every NCAA Division I record imaginable, including: All-time leader in career wins, strikeouts, shutouts, innings pitched, games started and games pitched. She also holds the record for throwing the most strikeouts in a single season with 663.
She attributes her success to her ability to have fun on the field.
“That’s what I would say to any of the softball players at San Benito High who might read this. The most important thing is to have fun while you’re playing,” she said. “And always work hard, and do all of the little things that are going to make you a better player.”
Clearly, that philosophy worked for Abbott. During her entire collegiate career with Lady Volunteers Abbott never threw less than 531 strikeouts in a single season and never had an ERA higher than 1.03, which she posted her freshman year.
For her college career Abbott posted an overall record of 189-34 – good for an .848 win percentage that included 23 no-hitters and six perfect games. In all, she had 2,440 strikeouts and ERA of 0.787.
During her final two seasons at Tennessee she would compete on the U.S. National team over the summer months where she played in several international events, including the Pan-American games. In three seasons with the U.S. National team she posted an ERA of 1.08.
With numbers like these, Abbott was clearly on the fast track to the elite U.S. Olympic team – a squad she had hoped to play for ever since she was a young child.
“I always thought that someday I would want to go to the Olympics,” she said. “I thought about it sometimes more than others.”
Despite all of the accomplishments and accolades Abbott, whose family owns and operates the Fosters Freeze on Nash Road in Hollister, has remained humble.
“Sometimes when I’m out doing something it still hits me that I’m going to get to represent my country in the Olympics,” said Abbott, who is just one of five pitchers on the Olympic roster. “Nothing is greater than to be able to represent your country.”
Born in Santa Cruz, Abbott moved to Salinas with her family when she was 3. She first started playing softball at the age of 7 for the Salinas Bobby Socks before eventually competing on the Salinas Storm.
By the time she reached high school, Abbott was already an accomplished player and quickly became one of the top pitchers in the nation, averaging more than 300 strikeouts in her three seasons with the Vikings.
In her junior season, Abbott threw seven perfect games, while posting a 0.17 ERA. That year, she threw back-to-back perfect games in the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs – striking out 14 of the 15 batters in the first game and 18 more in the seven-inning title game.
For her efforts she was awarded the California High School Sports Bay Area Player of the Year and Athlete of the Year. She also won 10 MVP awards during her high school career, including winning the prestigious MVP award for the Central Coast Section twice. She was also named Pitcher of the Year in league on three occasions.
Abbott credits much of her success today to those years in the Tri County Athletic League – a league that included powerhouse schools such as San Benito High, Live Oak, Notre Dame and North Salinas. Since 1996, at least one team from the MBL/TCAL has been represented in a CCS championship game.
“It was the Monterey Bay League when I first started and then it became the TCAL my final years,” Abbott said. “I think that high school league was incredible for softball. So many players that have come out of that league have gone on to play in college, and that says so much about this area. And the players around here just keep getting better and better.”
Although she is from Salinas, Abbott does spend quite a bit of time in Hollister.
“My parents work there so I go over there a lot,” she said. “My accountant is over there too.”
