Aggressive fielding won Blackwell a place
Evans High School fast-pitch softball center fielder Sheena Blackwell hopes to start a legacy in college.
Evans High School softball player Sheena Blackwell is surrounded by her family as she signs a scholarship to play for Aiken Technical College.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
The 18-year-old signed a letter of intent last month to play for the Division II Aiken Technical College, which plans to field its first softball team in the fall.
"I thought it would be interesting because its their first year having a softball team," Blackwell said. "We will be setting the standard for the first year. It will be interesting."
Blackwell first stepped onto a softball field at age 9. She cut her teeth playing for several traveling squads in Georgia and South Carolina.
Aggressive fielding and a strong bat earned the recent graduate several accolades as a three-year starter for the Lady Knights.
Last season, she helped lead Evans to a Region 7-AAAAA championship with a .337 batting average, 15 RBIs, six triples and eight doubles.
"It's going to be hard to replace her in the outfield with her speed and gutsy play," Evans softball coach Colette Cassedy said. "And her bat's going to be hard to replace."
Blackwell believes her combative style, especially considering her petite 5-foot, 2-inch and 117-pound frame, impressed Aiken Tech coaches the most.
"I'm an aggressive person, and I can get out some aggression in softball," she said. "My favorite thing is to dive for a ball."
Currently, Blackwell is playing part-time ball for another traveling team. She is expending most of her energy in the gym and running in preparation for her first college practice on Aug. 10.
"I hope we do really good," she said. "I hope the girls will work together real well since we're just now putting it together. Hopefully, we'll go far."