Attention to detail got catcher noticed

Softball player Nicki Kinner proved her worth as a catcher during the 2007 region tournament.

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Greenbrier twice tried to steal third on the Evans High catcher, and she threw the runner out both times.

"She was aware of what was going on," Knights coach Colette Cassidy said. "It shocked me. I figured she was sleeping."

Kinner signed Wednesday with Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Ga., after a coach noticed her at a tournament last summer when she played for the U-18 Rockers.

Cassidy said it was Kinner's intelligence that lifted her to the next level.

"She's a very smart catcher," Cassidy said. "She would study between innings who was coming to bat."

Evans coaches had to teach Kinner how to call the game. But it didn't take long for her to pick it up.

"She grew into it," Cassidy said. "She's very disciplined."

Kinner wants to study nursing or go to medical school. ABAC is a two-year school, but Kinner said school officials were contemplating making it four years.

"It's a really good fit for me right now," Kinner said.

Kinner began playing tee-ball when she was 3. She graduated to recreation league and travel ball. She played two years on junior varsity at Evans before joining Cassidy's team as a junior.

Now she'll play for Fillies coach Donna Campbell. Kinner made it official Wednesday when she signed in the Evans High School media center.

"I'm so nervous, and I'm just signing a piece of paper," Kinner said.