As far as Wednesdays go, it’s hard to imagine topping the one Chelsea Thomas had this week. The sophomore pitcher made history against Western Illinois, striking out her 287th batter to break the Missouri softball record for most strikeouts in a season. But that was just the icing on the cake.
Earlier that day, the Amateur Softball Association of America announced that Thomas had accepted an invitation to try out for the 2011 U.S.A. Softball Women’s National team. Thomas will join teammate Rhea Taylor and 28 other athletes from around the country for tryouts at the National Team Selection Camp in California from June 12-17.
Thomas expressed her excitement after completing her 24th win of the season Wednesday.
“It’s been one of my dreams since I was a little girl,” Thomas said. “Coach talked to me, and I got the email, and it was crazy. I was so happy and so emotional at the same time because that’s what you work for since you start playing softball, is trying to play at that top level.”
After missing most of last season with a wrist injury, Thomas has enjoyed what she called an “unreal” sophomore season. She leads the nation in ERA (0.70), is fifth in strikeouts per seven innings (11.4) and is tied for 12th with 10 shutouts. She’s also thrown two perfect games this season and won the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week award five times. Coach Ehren Earleywine said he was proud of his young pitcher’s latest accomplishment.
“I’m so happy for her, because from the day I recruited her, her and her dad said her dream was to play for the national team,” Earleywine said. “And I knew it would eventually happen, but I didn’t know it would happen this fast.”
Her banner weekend against Oklahoma a couple weeks ago might’ve helped speed up the process. In two back-to-back extra inning wins, Thomas compiled 34 strikeouts over 20 innings of nationally televised softball.
“Those U.S.A. people were sitting on their couches watching those games,” Earleywine said. “And I think by the end of the second game they were scratching their heads going ‘We need to get a phone number here, this kid can throw.’”
If both Taylor and Thomas make the squad, they’ll spend the next few months playing teams in three different countries. Taylor said she was glad to have someone familiar at camp, and pointed out how much this meant for the program.
“I’m really excited that she’ll be there, because I won’t be out there not knowing anybody,” Taylor said. “It says a lot, because a lot of people still don’t think that Missouri is anything. There’s a lot to be said for two people from this team going, and people just need to realize that we’re not just some subpar team.”
Missouri’s softball program has been thrust into the spotlight this season, thanks to a top-ten ranking and multiple nationally televised games. Even so, Earleywine admitted that sending two players to the national team could be a great help in recruiting.
“It says we’re good, and that’s a big deal to recruits,” Earleywine said. “That’s a big selling point that a lot of these programs use, is that we’ve got ‘x’ amount of kids on the national team. As a recruit, that’s what you want to hear because that’s what those girls dream about.”
As for Thomas’ future on the national stage, Earleywine said his expectations couldn’t be any higher for the young Iowa native.
“I’ve told (the national team) people, look, you do whatever you want to do but someday she will be the best pitcher ever for the national team,” Earleywine said. “And they were like, ‘oh, come on’…but she’s got the complete package, and the character and everything that you need. I’m happy for her.”
