| Olympic medalist | ||
| Medal record | ||
| Competitor for United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Women's Softball | ||
| Olympic Games | ||
| Gold | 2004 Athens | Team Competition |
| Silver | Beijing 2008 | Team Competition |
Natasha Watley (born November 27, 1981) is an American, former 4-time First Team All-American, left-handed hitting softball player for the UCLA Bruins and USA Softball Women’s National Team from Irvine, California.[1] She plays the position of shortstop and first base, and helped her teams win a national championship, the gold medal for softball at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and the silver for the Beijing Olympics. She is the first African-American female to play on the USA Softball team in the Olympics. She owns numerous records for the Bruins and is one of select players to bat at least .400 with 300 hits, 200 runs and 100 stolen bases.
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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.
In 2000, Watley earned status by being named a First Team All-American as well as All Pac-10.[2][3] She stole 32 bases to break the school record, which now ranks 4th all-time at UCLA.[4]
On May 13, Watley was a perfect 4/4 with 2 RBIs and a double against the Oregon Ducks for career high in single game hits.[5] On May 18, she stole a record 4 bases to break another school record vs. the Canisius Golden Griffins.[6]
Watley and the Bruins made it into the Women's College World Series finals vs. the Oklahoma Sooners. Watley was perfect against Jennifer Stewart, going 3/3 and scoring the only run in the Bruins eventual 3-1 defeat on May 29.[7]
Watley repeated all-season honors for a second striaght year.[8] She set school records with 75 runs and 56 stolen bases, while her season total hits were second all-time.
Beginning March 2 through April 29, 2001, she managed a 32 consecutive game hit streak, which is the 5th longest in NCAA history. The streak stretched to 36 games overall beginning on February 17; the Bruins had a week off prior to April 29. In that span, Watley batted .426 (55/129) with 14 RBI, a home run, three triples and doubles.
Once again on May 28, Watley found herself in the WCWS National Championship game vs. conference rival the Arizona Wildcats. Watley had one of 4 hits off MVP and eventual victor Jennie Finch.[9]
The streak of three First Team All-American and All Pac-10 honors continued as the junior also broke the school record for hits in a season (112), which also led the NCAA Division I.[10][11] Her triples and stolen bases were second best all-time, while her career best .485 average ranked 4th (5th all-time) at UCLA.
Notching her second longest streak, Watley began a 29 consecutive game hit streak on February 1 until March 9. Watley hit .543 (56/103) and had 24 RBIs, two home runs, three triples and 7 doubles. She also slugged .747% and overall her streak was 6th best for the NCAA.[12]
Watley would be named to the WCWS All-Tournament Team hitting over .450 for the Bruins.[13]
Again earning a place on the All-American team, the Bruin would add the 2003 Pac-10 "Player of The Year" and the Honda Broderick Cup for "Best Collegiate Female Athlete" and "Best Collegiate Softball Player."[14][15][16][17] Watley ranked top-10 in school season categories of batting average, hits, on base percentage and stolen bases.
From January 31 to February 31, she had her third longest hit streak at 19 consecutive games. She hit .500 (30/60) with 21 RBIs, two home runs, a triple and 4 doubles. On April 30, Watley batted in a career high 5 RBIs on two home runs to defeat the Washington Huskies.[18]
At the year's WCWS, Watley was again named to the All-Tournament Team, batting over .400 with 3 RBIs and slugging over .550%.[19] The Bruins made it into their third finale with Watley and claimed the no-hit win over Kelly Anderson and the California Golden Bears on May 26. Watley went 2/5 with a triple.[20]
In her four years as a starter for the Bruins, she finished tops in career hits, triples, runs and stolen basees. She ranked second in career batting average (.450) and top-10 in doubles, slugging and on base percentages. Watley holds the single season record for hits (112) and is currently ranked fourth in Pac-10 history. Watley is also listed seventh on the all-time NCAA record books with 112 hits in a single season. She was also the first UCLA Bruin to have two 100+ hit seasons.
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).
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]
Watley played her first season professionally with the New York/New Jersey Juggernaut in the National Pro Fastpitch league in 2005.[21] In her rookie season, Watley led the Nauts in batting with a .374 average and tallied 37 hits as the leadoff hitter.[22] In 2006, Watley played for the Philadelphia Force in the NPF. Today Watley plays for the USSSA Pride based out of Kissimmee, FL.