Extra Star Power: How Rising Star Catcher/Infielder Amanda Hasler Spent Her Labor Day Weekend

So how was your Labor Day Weekend?

Enjoy time away from the normal routines by traveling on the road (for fun)? Or did you stay home with family and just hang out? Maybe had a nice barbecue and watched some college football?

We heard from many of you and the routines for the last big holiday weekend of the summer varied from taking a well-deserved break from softball practices and games to wanting to get in the extra reps.

That was the case for Amanda Hasler from Avon, Connecticut, a 2022 grad who is a power-hitting catcher/first baseman on Dave Lotti’s Rhode Island Thunder 18U team.

According to her father, Jim, Amanda had a hitting lesson on Saturday and then practice later that day and on Sunday.

That work ethic has served the talented sophomore well as she has made the jump from 14U to 18U this fall thanks to her hitting and defensive skills.

Coach Lotti says, “Amanda has the strength to hit it out to all of all parts of the field. She also has the ability to catch any pitcher well.”

The East Coast standout had a huge freshman year in the spring for Avon (Conn.) High, hitting .585 with 11 home runs and a 1.25 slugging percentage to earn 1^st Team All-State honors.

This past summer with the RI Thunder 14U National team, Amanda had a stellar 1.369 OPS thanks to a .525 on-base percentage and an .844 slugging percentage as she played in top tournaments around the country including TC/USA Nationals, Atlanta Legacy, Boulder IDT and PGF Nationals.

At PGF, she had four home runs, including three in one day along with eight RBIs against three different teams on elimination day.

Not surprisingly, the slugging infielder is “being actively looking at by top Div. I schools throughout the country,” according to Coach Lotti.

With the end-of-the-year holidays of Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas coming up quickly, we wouldn’t be surprised to see Amanda in the cages or on the fields then too!