The Virginia Tech Hokies have added an additional pitcher to their arsenal for the 2010 season. Ashton Ward, a junior, was pulled straight from the heart of the Southeastern Conference as she left the Lady Vols of Tennessee to join head coach Scot Thomas and the Hokies this spring.
“I decided to leave Tennessee last summer,” said the junior pitcher from Charlotte, N.C. “I knew coach Thomas from high school, from being recruited in high school.
“After I got permission to contact other schools, I talked to him, and I always liked Tech, even in high school,” she continued, “great people, great school, no specific reason why I never came in the first place, and when he was still interested in talking to me, I knew that’s what I wanted to do.”
For Thomas, Ward’s decision to transfer was a second chance to add her to the team after missing out on her as a prized recruit coming out of high school.
“We had recruited her really heavily out of high school, and it came down between us and Tennessee the first time,” Thomas said. “I knew through the grapevine that she wasn’t happy and there was some possibility she was going to look to move, and I felt like because of our relationship before we had a pretty good chance of her coming here.”
As a freshman at the University of Tennessee, the pitcher led the program with a 27-5 record. In addition to the impressive record, she boasted an ERA of 1.88 and tallied 187 strikeouts in a little more than 200 innings.
“Ashton has really good movement on her pitches, and in softball it’s really important,” said freshman catcher Courtney Liddle. “You know, in baseball it’s a lot on speed, but Ashton really focuses on where she puts the ball. She’s really precise and really specific on where she puts the ball and that’s really important.”
In February 2008, Ward was honored by USA Softball and the National Fastpitch Coaches Association as the National Collegiate Player of the Week. She was also recognized by the SEC as its Pitcher and Freshman of the
Week.
“For a pitcher, you always want to have that solid rock,” Liddle added. “I think she has really good experience from being at another good program and then coming here.
A version of this article appeared in the Feb 3 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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I hope she is able to do better in the ACC and with her teamates here than she did at Tennessee. Ward is a talented athlete,and if she learns from her mistakes the sky is the limit for her. Good luck Ashton
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27-5 and 1.88 ERA not good? If she does that at VT, we will take it...There are other pitchers..Hope to see her contribute with the bat as well..yes, Good Luck Ashton!!
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Those stats were from 2 yrs ago. Her problems were of last year.
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..and last year has nothing to do with 2010...GO VTSB!!
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