Natasha Watley
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Competitor for  United States |
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| Women's Softball | |||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Gold | 2004 Athens | Team Competition | |
Natasha Watley (born November 27, 1981) is an American professional softball player currently with the USA Softball Women’s National Team.[1] She plays the position of shortstop and first base, and helped her team to win the gold medal for softball at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. She is the first African-American female to play on the USA Softball team in the Olympics.
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[edit] Early life
Watley was born in Canoga Park, California to parents Edwin and Carolyn Watley. Watley attended Woodbridge High School where she was named second team Louisville Slugger All-American in her junior and senior years. She hit over .445 in her last three seasons in addition to stealing 20+ bases each season.
[edit] College career
A four-time first team All-American shortstop from UCLA, Watley led her team to three straight Women's College World Series and the NCAA Division I Softball Championship title in 2003. In her senior year, she was awarded the Honda-Broderick Cup for top collegiate female athlete, as well as the PAC-10 Player of the Year award. In her four years as a starter for the Bruins, she finished top three in career hits (395), top five in career runs (252), top ten in career batting average (.450) and top ten in career stolen bases (158). Watley holds the single season record for hits (112) and is currently ranked fourth in Pac-10 history. In 2001, she managed a 32 game hit streak which is the fifth longest in NCAA history. Watley is also listed seventh on the all-time NCAA record books with 112 hits in a single season. As a junior, she surpassed the UCLA career record for runs scored, finishing the season with 188. She was also the first UCLA Bruin to have two 100+ hit seasons.
[edit] National Team
In the summer of 2001, Watley played for the USA Red Team helping them win the US Cup and place third at the Canada Cup. She was named Most Inspirational Player at the Canada Cup in addition to being named to the all-tournament team. In 2002, she was named to the all-tournament team at the Canada Cup and the 2002 ISF World Championship tournaments where she also earned Most Valuable Player. In 2003, Watley was also awarded a gold medal for her performance at the Pan American Games. She has finished twice as a top-three finalist for USA Softball National Player of the Year award (2002 and 2003).
[edit] 2004 Olympics
In 2004, Watley assisted the US softball team to their third consecutive gold medal at the Olympic Games in Athens. Watley was third on the team with a .400 batting average, with 9 hits and 10 RBI. She also broke the Olympic record for stolen bases with five in nine games.[1]
[edit] Professional career
Watley played her first season professionally with the New York/New Jersey Juggernaut in the National Pro Fastpitch league in 2005.[2] In her rookie season, Watley led the Nauts in batting with a .374 average and tallied 37 hits as the leadoff hitter.[3] In 2006, Watley played for the Philadelphia Force in the NPF, but was expected to have limited availability due to her USA National Team duties.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Natasha Watley profile. USA Softball. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
- ^ "NY/NJ Juggernaut Announce Signing of Olympian Natasha Watley". Black Athlete Sports Network (2005-03-28). Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
- ^ a b Natasha Watley profile. Philadelphia Force. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
