For her last season this year alone she had an ERA of 1.14 and limited batters to a .183 average. The teams rotate between batting and fielding, with each session called an inning, and switch when the fielding team gets three opposition players out. Im a little bit tired, but nothing near what I can be, he said. Ten athletes won three medals, while thirty more won two medals. Japan's pitching depth certainly makes it the gold-medal favorite, although the empty stadiums remove some of the home-field advantage it would have otherwise held. This is what had contributed to her ranking as the seventh-best player. Erin Hartwell won bronze in the men's 1km time trial and Rebecca Twigg won bronze in the women's individual pursuit. He ended with 401 career points and returned 11 of 24 career interceptions for TDs. Even better, there is still more action from Rachel Garcia at UCLA to come. She was also a three-time NFCA First-Team All America. USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium | Oklahoma City, OK, Women's College World Series Info & tickets. Group B: United States, South Korea, Israel. [3] Results summary [ edit] Olympics: Gold Medal - 1996, 2000, 2004; Silver Medal - 2008, 2020 ISF Women's World Championship: Gold Medal - 1974, 1978, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2016, 2018; Silver Medal - 1965, 1970, 2012. During his three years in the lineup, St. Benedict's Prep went 65-0 and outscored its opposition, 293-7, establishing a long-held dynasty. One of the more interesting aspects to the Olympic tournament will be the strict clock and pace-of-play guidelines. In the by discipline sections below, medalists' names are bolded. Wrapped up career with 2,581 points. [2], The United States roster was released on June 20, 2021.[3]. The familiar infielders include Danny Espinosa and Ryan Goins. Moultrie had four single-season records while playing for the Gators which included an on-base percentage of .519, batting average of .443, five triples, and 31 stolen bases. Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners. Monica Abbott: Pitcher: Santa Cruz, California. "Golf, softball rejected for Barcelona Olympics", "International Softball Federation Timeline", "Richardson Travels Hard Road to Softball", "Softball at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games: Women's Softball Summary", "Softball at the 2000 Sydney Summer Games: Women's Softball Summary", "Softball at the 2000 Sydney Summer Games:Women's Softball Round-Robin", "Softball at the 2004 Athina Summer Games: Women's Softball Summary", "They'rrre out! The United States won gold in 1996 (Atlanta), 2000 (Sydney) and 2004 (Athens) before an upset loss to Japan in 2008 left the team with silver. Dominican Republic: Most of the top Dominican talent is locked up in the U.S. major leagues or minors, but the Dominican Republic has managed to field an interesting team. Three pentathletes represented the United States in 1992. 545 competitors, 355 men and 190 women, took part in 248 events in 28 sports. July 17, 2021 9:00 am ET !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)? Bubba Nickles just finished her college softball career with the UCLA softball team where she was in the utility position. Vote as many times as you want. South Carolina improved to 17-2 with the win. I shed a couple tears, and wow. The American softball team has won back-to-back WBSC Womens Softball World Championships and this momentum will carry over into the Tokyo Olympics. For the first time since 1972, the Games were boycott-free, due to important global political changes. The pitching staff includes several former major leaguers, including Oliver Perez, who made five appearances earlier this season for Cleveland. Rachel Garcia is a recently graduated senior from the UCLA softball team. Monica Abbott holds the DI record for wins (189), career shutouts (112), season strikeouts (724), career strikeouts (2,440) games pitched in a season (69) and in a career (253) and most career innings pitched (1,448). She finished her college career with 68 home runs, 1,432 putouts, and a .716 slugging percentage. Outfielder Hyun-Soo Kim has been a staple of Korean teams in international tournaments -- you might remember him from his brief time with the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies -- although his numbers have dropped off this season (.288, 12 home runs). The committee was tasked with reviewing performances from the 1990-91 and 1991-92 NBA seasons. 1 Oklahoma softball behind 4-run inning, 2023 Clearwater Invitational: Schedule, scores, how to watch, The college softball mercy rule, explained, Oklahoma softball: The all-time starting lineup, The top college softball non-conference tournaments and games to watch this season, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Fernandez was a four-time first team All-American and was named to theAll-College World Series team four years in a row. Nickles is the youngest player on the American team at 23 years old. As a result, the Americans and other nations where professional baseball is developed relied on collegiate players, while Cubans used their most experienced veterans, who technically were considered amateurs as they nominally held other jobs, but in fact trained full-time. In the end, Yugoslavia was banned from taking part in any team sports, but individual Yugoslav athletes were allowed to compete as "independent Olympic participants". There are some other shortstop legends such as Dot Richardson, but Watley without adoubt deserves this spot. She won USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year in 2018 and 2019. In softball, the teams are headlined by the United States (which won gold in 1996, 2000 and 2004, and is the top-ranked team in the world) and Japan (which won gold in 2008 and is ranked No. Infielders Danny Valencia and Ty Kelly also have big league experience, as does catcher Ryan Lavarnway. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Michelle Moultrie: Outfielder: Jacksonville, Florida. This 5-6 right-handed softball pitcher finished her career with an astounding 80-1 record, compiling 60 shutouts, 23 no-hitters, 10 perfect games, 728 strikeouts and 56 walks in 486 innings. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) launched an appeal for the observance of the Olympic Truce for the first time. She also ranks first in RBIs,total bases, slugging, walks, on-base percentage and hitting with a .466 career average. The six archers combined for a 5-5 record in individual matches and a 2-2 record in team matches. While softball is similar to baseball, there are key differences, including field and ball size. In 2020 while playing for the USA team in February, Spaulding suffered an ACL injury as she was running to second base. The US team has been dominant in international play, taking the gold medal in three straight Olympics and seven straight world championships. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. La Jolla, California June 22-26, 1992. The following U.S. competitors won medals at the games. A visual identity is developed for each edition of the Olympic Games. Brundage has very similar accolades, so it was a really hard choice, but Parks was a powerhouse third baseman, the best player in the country in her time and a UCLA hall-of-famer. While the rules remained vague, interest in the game grew, and more than 100 area high school teams were formed by 1892. World Baseball Classic 2023: Full schedule and how to watch live, Team USA at World Baseball Classic 2023 live streaming and TV: Full schedule and how to watch, What is the World Baseball Classic and who won the last edition? Softball was introduced at the Olympic Games Atlanta 1996 as a women-only medal sport, with the United States winning the sports inaugural gold medal. D2 Both wrestlers disqualified for passivity, This page was last edited on 25 February 2023, at 17:20. On the American roster, she will be playing second base. Former medal winners Monica Abbott and Cat Osterman headline the United States roster for softball's Olympic return in 2020, the sport's first appearance since 2008. Now after having surgery, the UCLA graduate will be able to participate in the Olympics. Next, he will try to become the first man to win three individual golds at a single distance worlds. For when it comes to hitting Gracia hit 43 home runs, a batting average of .337, and 175 RBIs. Game 1 Recap Minnesota State began the day with a 6-2 loss to California, Pa. LAS VEGAS As a kid, Janie Takeda Reed was "small and skinny," her mom remembers.Now, her legacy will loom large in Pac-12 Conference history for all time. She was on the Olympic softball team in 2004 that won the gold medal, along with being on the 2008 team that won the silver medal. 2014 Here is a rundown of what to watch for in the tournament and some key players. Anything can happen in a short tournament where it will come down to one game, but Japan feels like the easy pick here. Here's the schedule, with all times ET: Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners. However, the organisation of these demonstrations created a lot of extra work for the OCOGs, which had to provide services that were almost identical to those for the sports on the Olympic programme. The first 10 members of the Dream Team were announced on a selection show on NBC on Sept. 21, 1991. The committee was tasked with reviewing performances from the 1990-91 and 1991-92 NBA seasons. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. - The No. They will be joined by Australia, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and Italy. . Haylie McCleney: Outfielder: Morris, Alabama. She played severalpositions at UCLA and ranks second in career home runs at UCLA behind Nuveman. In her career, she had 355 hits, 15 of which ended up being home runs. In the freeskiing events of halfpipe, slopestyle and big air, American woman racked up eight silver or bronze medals dating to 2005 before Faulhabers breakthrough. Shot put legend Nick Vena will close his dominant scholastic career in track and field at Morristown High when he competes in the NJSIAA Meet of Champions on Thursday in Old Bridge.Which left us wondering: Where does Vena rank among the most dominant scholastic athletes ever to come out of New Jersey? Ended career with a then-state-record 375 points on 189 goals and 186 assists. Its unbelievable, Faulhaber said, according to U.S. [13] IOC President Jacques Rogge said they were "looking for an added value wide appeal, especially for young people. Erin Donohue, Haddonfield, 2001, Girls track and field. By the time the roster was announced, Johnson had already retired from professional basketball. Merlene Ottey (JAM) finished only six-hundredths of a second behind the winner, Gail Devers (USA), and yet she ended up in only fifth place. Vena has won eight titles at the Meet of Champions (seven in the shot and one in the discus), and captured five national titles in the shot put (four indoors). Roster 1 Matt Anderson (OPP, 6-10, West Seneca, N.Y., Penn State Univ.) Tenn. Tech earns first auto bid into women's NCAA tournament. Answers to the most asked questions about the WBC, Ohtani Shohei: Countdown to the 2023 World Baseball Classic latest updates on Japan and Angels superstar, Ohtani Shohei + World Baseball Classic = March madness in Japan, Not out: How community-sports programme Lost Boyz is striking up change for Chicagos youth, New Sports on the block! - Channel dedicated to newly introduced sports at Tokyo 2020 launches, What we learned: Baseball wrap-up from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, What we learned: Softball wrap-up from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, JPN v USA - Gold Medal Game - Softball | Tokyo 2020 Replays, USA v JPN - Gold Medal Game - Baseball | Tokyo 2020 Replays. She will be playing at the shortstop position. Braden Montgomery and College Baseballs Top Players to Watch, Ranking the Top-Five Super Bowl Halftime Shows Ever, Grading Every AL Central Teams Offseason. At the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, the independent teams of Estonia and Latvia made their first apparition since 1936, and Lithuania sent its first team since 1928. This site is not endorsed by, sponsored by, or affiliated with these schools or teams. The right-handed catcher just recently graduated from the University of Arizona where she was a three-year starter, and in 2019 was Arizonas first, first-team NFCA All-American catcher since 1998. By Marissa Myers She landed a 900 and back-to-back 720s. In mens ski halfpipe, American Alex Ferreiraadded his first world championships medal (bronze) to his Olympic silver and bronze and two X Games titles. In her four years, the highest batting average against her in one season was .113, in 1991. Even though she will be a catcher for this Olympic softball team, in her college days she actually played first and second base. CLERMONT, Fla. ---The Minnesota State softball team suffered a pair of losses on the second day of its Florida trip as it fell to California, Pa. 6-2 and Tiffin 3-0.With the losses, MSU owns an 8-4 record. Stolz joinedShani Davis, who coached Stolz in the past, as the only American men to win two titles at one world single distance championships. She scored more than 1,000 points in both her junior and senior seasons and led her team to four straight Group 3 state finals, including championships in 1978 and '79. At the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, the independent teams of Estonia and Latvia made their first apparition since 1936, and Lithuania sent its first team since 1928. Frenchwoman Tess Ledeux earned her second world title in ski big air in the absence of Olympic champion Gu. Here's how WBC offenses stack up with MLB's best, Las Vegas prepared to give A's 'better opportunity', Female minor league manager shadows Lovullo, Paxton (hamstring) unlikely for start of season, Jays' Guerrero to miss WBC with inflamed knee, Rangers, LHP Smith agree to 1-year, $1.5M deal, 7 Cubs combine for 1st spring no-no since 2017, Scherzer tries to test pitch clock limits, gets balk. Roster. In January, Gasser, 31, withdrew moments before the X Games big air after suffering what she called a mild concussion in slopestyle the day before. His grandfather, Erwin, earned a silver medal in 1936 and his father, Carsten, a gold in 1972. Before the Summer Games start, get to know which stars make up this team. 2019 champs: How UCLA took home the national time. Koyo Aoyagi leads the Central League with a 1.79 ERA and Masato Morishita is second at 2.29, while Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1.82) tops the Pacific League. There were a few other outfield options for these three spots, but Nickles can hit for power. Originally [Bird] said he would not compete in the Olympics because he felt the Games are more for the younger folks, NBCsMarv Albertsaid to Johnson (Bird didnt appear on the show due to a prior commitment). 2 UCLA 8-0 in five innings, in its Judi Garman Classic -- and spring break -- finale on Saturday (March 4) at CSU Fullerton's Anderson Family Field. Then during her time in the National Pro Fastpitch League (NPF), she was a four-time NPF Champion. July 17, 2021 9:00 am Arioto isnt just a softball star, she also started her own business called The Integrated Vault to help focus on self-growth and the mental aspect of sports. Cat Osterman was the youngest member of Team USA when it won its last Olympic gold in softball back in 2004. [2] Fantasy baseball: Which prospects have fantasy value in 2023? He might not be the ace of the staff, however. The United States roster was released on June 20, 2021. Tenn. Tech earns first auto bid into women's NCAA tournament. OKLAHOMA CITY -- Continuing to build off the Tokyo 2020 Olympic silver medal finish, USA Softball announced today the 18 athletes who will represent the United States as a member of the 2022 USA Softball Women's National Team (WNT) World Games roster. [11] Softball was still played at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, however, and the Japanese team claimed their first gold and third overall medal in Olympic softball. The 2023 Oklahoma Sooners softball team is an American college softball team that represents the University of Oklahoma during the 2023 NCAA Division I softball season. It would include at least one collegian, an ode to the history of Olympic basketball, and perhaps another NBA player. During the 95th Session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), held in Puerto Rico in 1989, it was decided that demonstration sports would be eliminated definitively from the 1996 Atlanta Games onwards. Ally Carda: Pitcher/Infielder: Elk Grove, California. Takeda Reed, who helped Oregon softball win three conference titles and make three Women's College World Series appearances as a player with the Ducks from 2012-15, was inducted Friday into the Pac-12's Hall of Honor. Starting July 28, each team plays games against the other teams in its group. Two national championships (1990 and 1992) and three Olympic gold medals later, the legend became the first player to have her number retired at UCLA and she is enshrined in the UCLA Hall of. Those accolades alone were enough to get her inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame, but she is also ranked in the top 10 in six statistical categories all-time at UCLA. Three players are coming off finishing their collegiate seasons this year: UCLA's Rachel Garcia and Bubba Nickles and Arizona's Dejah Mulipola. Honorable mentions: Megan Langenfield, Dot Richardson, Jennifer Brundage, Keira Goerl, Kylee Perez, Kelly Howard, Amanda Freed, Debbie Doom, Anjelica Seldon, Allexis Bennett, Andrea Duran, Lisa Longaker, Ally Carda. The Houston Astros drafted him as No. It is governed by USA Softball (formerly known as the Amateur Softball Association) and takes part in international softball competitions. Theyre all insanely good. Baseball and softball were absent from the Olympic programme following Beijing 2008. Mercer County's Bella Truelove (22) charges a bouncing ball to left field during the first inning of the Carpenter Cup softball game against Olympic/Colonial at FDR Park in Philadelphia, Monday . Baseball featured several times on the Olympic programme as a demonstration sport before being included as a medal event at the Olympic Games Barcelona 1992. Went on to win a Stanley Cup championship with the Devils in 1995. 16 fencers represented the United States in 1992. Andreas Keller of the gold medal-winning German field hockey team was the third generation of his family to win a medal in the event. Those 10 players, in order of the reveal: Magic Johnson Charles Barkley Karl Malone John Stockton Patrick Ewing David Robinson Larry Bird Chris Mullin Since the bases arent as far apart, there is a shorter pitching distance. Ski and Snowboard. Softball was first imagined as indoor baseball in 1887 in Chicago, Illinois, by reporter George Hancock after watching someone hit a boxing glove with a broom handle. Monica Abbott holds the DI record for wins (189), career shutouts (112), season strikeouts (724 . Results for the following international competitions could not be located: International friendlies were not included. She is also second in average at .450, tying her for seventh in NCAA history. Player Pos HT WT Birth Date Birth City Pre-NBA Draft Team Nationality; Charles Barkley: PF: 6-6: 252: Feb 20, 1963: Leeds (AL) Auburn: United States: When FIBA voted in 1989 to allow NBA players into the Olympics, it led to a new system of choosing a U.S. mens basketball roster. While Japan is the favorite, the U.S. certainly has a chance. He became a baseball star in 1992 when he was named the College World Series Most Outstanding player and won the Golden Spikes Award. She led all of DIwith 24 home runs during the 2004 season and led the team in average, runs, hits, and homers in that championship year. For Delaney Spaulding, the Olympics being postponed a year was the best thing that couldve happened for her. The world stood still as the USA basketball team was announced for the Barcelona 1992 Olympics. Marissa Myers is a Sports Journalist & Analyst from New York. We went withJanice Parks here, who won two national championships, was a three-time first team All-American and won the prestigious Honda Award as the top college player in her sportin 1989. The roster includes some NCAA record holders. Softball made its Olympic debut at Atlanta 1996, after baseball became a medal event at Barcelona 1992. Every World Baseball Classic 2023 team roster - which MLB . More recently,Heather BergsmaandBrittany Bowedid it on the womens side. The Wolverines wrapped up the Garman Classic with a 3-2 record over three days. Hanna Faulhaberbecame the first American woman to win a freeski world title, taking the halfpipe on the final day of the world championships in Bakuriani, Georgia, on Saturday. By the time she was a senior, she stood 6-6 and towered above her opponents under the basket. They won the silver medal at the 2008 and 2020 Summer Olympics. He went on to publish rules for the game and later took it outside, playing on fields too small for baseball. Mexico qualified when it upset the U.S. in the 2019 Premier12 tournament (the U.S. subsequently qualified earlier this year in a different tournament), so don't discount Mexico's chance to surprise. The Olympics have always had a love-hate relationship with baseball. Stolz is the third speed skater in history to win junior and senior world titles in the same season after fellow Wisconsin natives Eric Heiden and Beth Heiden. Media: 13,082 media (5,131 written press, 7,951 broadcasters). Monica Abbott: Pitcher: Santa Cruz, California. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. The U.S. had upgraded from college players to minor leaguers, but the IOC still axed the sport for the London and Rio games. In 1907, a guide for indoor baseball published by Albert Spalding allowed for game flexibility with two constants: a larger ball than baseball as well as underhand pitching. The world single distance championships began in 1996. On the offensive side, 27-year-old outfielder Masataka Yoshida is the player to watch. * - Athlete ran in the heat but not the final. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Over her college career for pitching, she had a 2.29 ERA, only allowed 272 runs, and had 728 strikeouts over 667.1 innings pitched. For the first time in Olympic history, the United States team would feature active NBA stars Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley.They became known as the 'Dream Team' defeating their opponents by an average of 44 points en route to the gold medal. Ryan, just traded from the Rays to the Twins, is also in Triple-A, where he has 3.63 ERA with 75 K's in 57 innings. An iconic part of any Olympic Games, each host offers their unique version. After being left out of the 2012 through 2016 games, softball returns to the Olympics. Newton, the University of Kentucky Athletic Director and an assistant coach on the 1984 Olympic team. Michelle Moultrie played softball for the University of Florida where she was a walk-on player and graduated in 2012. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Olympic championSu Yimingof China didnt enter worlds. The four-time first team All-American and three-time Olympian is No. He has been one of the top sluggers in Japan's Central League, hitting .314/.413/.603 with 19 home runs. She has a .569 on-base percentage which ranks third and is the schools all-time leading hitter with a .477 batting average. Men's basketball became open to all professionals and the U.S. sent a "Dream Team" of superstars, including Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird. The last two players to fill out the roster were named nearly eight months later. Claudio Reyna, St. Benedict's Prep, 1990, Boys soccer. She went off to win a few medals in the Olympics, then come back to UCLA to coach and can be found in the schools hall of fame. Note: Times in the first round ranked across all heats. The United States, fielding a team of college players that included Mark McGwire, Barry Larkin, Will Clark, B.J. Baseball, which had appeared as an exhibition (or demonstration) sport at six Olympic Games, finally achieves medal status. The team finished second in the overall medal rankings, narrowly losing to the Unified Team, 108 to 112. [5] With three gold medals and two silver, the United States were the most successful team. Softball is back at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. She had over 100 hits in each of her last three seasons, leading the Bruins in hits, as well as stolen bases, all four years. In softball, top female pitchers can reach speeds of over 100km/h. 19 Florida Gators took down the No. As a batter, she has a .353 batting average, 39 home runs, and a fielding percentage of .986. In the 2018 WBSC World Championship, she hit a .308, two home runs, and nine RBIs. AustrianAnna Gasserearned her second world title in snowboard big air to go along with her two Olympic gold medals and 2018 X Games crown. [12] The United States won silver, and the Australian team bronze, to become the only countries to win a medal in all four Olympic softball tournaments. Oklahoma is back at No. The setback snapped a five-game winnings streak, moving the Fighting Illini to 11-6 on the year. The full U.S. Olympic softball team named on Oct. 9: Monica Abbott Ali Aguilar Valerie Arioto Ally Carda Amanda Chidester Rachel Garcia Haylie McCleney Michelle Moultrie Dejah Mulipola Aubree Munro Bubba Nickles Cat Osterman Janie Reed Delaney Spaulding Kelsey Stewart Replacement Players: Taylor Edwards, Hannah Flippen, Keilani Ricketts. Bubba Nickles: Utility: Merced, California. 1 Oklahoma softball behind 4-run inning, 2023 Clearwater Invitational: Schedule, scores, how to watch, The college softball mercy rule, explained, Oklahoma softball: The all-time starting lineup, The top college softball non-conference tournaments and games to watch this season, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Chidester is Michigans first Olympic softball player. Video Center See top plays & highlights of the best high school sports FULLERTON, Calif. -- The University of Michigan softball team fell to No. [5], Athletes who won at least two gold medals or three total medals are listed below.[5]. Then there was the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of West and East Germany, as well as North and South Yemen. Cuba won the gold medal on the sports competitive debut and three times in total before it was removed from the programme following the Olympic Games Beijing 2008. Charles Barkley Dajuan Wagner, Camden, 2001, Boys basketball. From 2007-2017 Abbott was in the NPF and won five Pitcher of the Year awards. ST Technical superiority a margin of victory of at least 15 points. Over those four years, she also had a .980 fielding average. The Japanese and Korean professional leagues, however, are shutting down their leagues to allow their best professionals to compete. United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics. Next Match: BATON ROUGE, La. Also writes about the NFL, College Football, NFL Draft, and occasionally Boxing. Stolz, an 18-year-old who honed his skating on a Wisconsin pond, won the 1000m in 1 minute, 7.11 seconds in Heerenveen, Netherlands. too many subsection headers dividing up its content, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Tincher ends USA Softball's streak, proves she can beat the best", "Women's National Team, 2020 Olympics, Selection Trials", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_women%27s_national_softball_team&oldid=1130798750, Wikipedia articles in need of updating from September 2016, All Wikipedia articles in need of updating, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 1 January 2023, at 01:11. The NBA season ran much longer than the NCAA they used to put college players on the Olympic team and the best pros abilities didnt need to be dissected any more than watching the 82-game regular season and playoffs. She graduated from the University of Washington in 2017 where she was an All-American shortstop and hit 55 home runs, with a slugging average of .761. As a high school junior, he won the silver medal in the decathlon at the 1952 Olympics. The success of the tournament, that attracted over 70,000 spectators, led to the creation of its first governing body, the national Amateur Softball Association (ASA). In 2019 she was a Pan-American Gold Medalist for Team U.S.A. Dejah Mulipola: Catcher: Garden Grove, California. The international governing bodies of softball, baseball, rugby sevens, golf, karate, roller sports, and squash petitioned the IOC in 2009 to fill two sport slots at the 2016 Olympics. The 15-player roster is loaded with two Olympians and 13 members from the 2019 Pan American gold medal team. Karl Malone Mexico: The big name here is five-time All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, who last played in the majors in 2018. [1] At the 97th IOC session in 1991, the sport was granted official status as a medal sport for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Here is the Week 1 ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 poll, released Feb. 14. First baseman Baek-ho Kang turns 22 in a couple of days but is already one of the best hitters in the KBO, leading the league with a .395 average with 10 home runs. Other than Thomas, the top players who didnt make the Dream Team, based off All-NBA honors or All-Star voting in 1991 and 1992: Dominique Wilkins (All-NBA second team in 1991), Kevin Johnson (All-NBA second team and All-Star Game starter in 1991), Tim Hardaway (All-NBA second team in 1992) andMichael Adams(most 1992 All-Star votes among non-Dream Team players and Thomas). Perhaps some MLB officials should pay attention here. The best hitter on the team might actually be Tyler Austin, who spent parts of four seasons in the majors from 2016 to 2019.