The king of the diamond – USU softball team hosts home-run derby
Fouls, line drives and pop flys weren’t good enough to win Monday.
Home runs were the answer in the first-ever home-run derby put on by the USU softball team.
Fifty-three participants-the majority students-responded to the invitation of free hot dogs and other prizes by paying a dollar to try to be named home-run king.
“It’s a gathering we all like to do,” said USU junior first baseman Aubrie Stroman. “It was an opportunity for fans to be involved in the sport that we all love to play.”
The derby gave an opportunity for fans to meet USU softball team members and to promote awareness for USU’s 2008 home opener against the University of Utah Wednesday, Stroman said.
USU head softball coach Candi Letts said the fan-player interaction increased support for the team.
“It was a really a good thing to get fans out there wild and crazy and enjoying it,” Letts said. “It gave fans a chance to interact with the team, and they got to know the team more on a personal level.”
The first 50 participants received a free hot dog and five swings at bat per round.
The derby consisted of three rounds. The first round had six batters advance to the second round: USU seniors Taylor Bodily, Toby Pykles, Broc Neagle, sophomores Taylore Mackay, Jake Fagan and Matt Sonnenburg.
One home run hit over the fence was required to participate in the next round.
Taylor Bodily, a Freemont, Calif., native majoring in interdisciplinary studies, hit two home runs in the first round to advance to the second round and eventually to the final round with Neagle, a Farmington, Utah, native, majoring in information systems.
In the third round, Neagle smacked three home runs out of five swings, while Bodily only hit one. But by that point, both hitters totaled five home runs from all rounds combined.
Thus, the derby resulted in a tie-breaker face-off.
In the tie-breaker, a one-pitch hit was given to each hitter, and whoever had the home run off the single hit won.
Bodily did just that, with his winning hit soaring onto nearby 800 East.
Bodily said he did not expect to win.
“I feel great,” Bodily explained. “It was a lifelong dream accomplished today. I love USU softball. We should get more fans out here because it is a great game.”
Bodily received a Winger’s gift card and a T-shirt.
The derby served as a stress reliever and relaxation for USU softball members, Stroman said.
“It’s just a chance for us to have fun and not be stressed out while practicing,” she said.
The money raised in the fundraiser was just to cover the event and the cost of the hot dogs, she said.
“More than anything, the derby was just for promotion and not so much for fund raising,” she said. “The girls really enjoy doing it.”
Letts said the seniors of the team-Tera Evans, Amy Schiable, and Heather Haak-organized the event.
-candice.sandness@aggiemail.usu.edu
USU senior Taylor Bodily, won the derby, with the winning hit landing on 800 East.