RANKINGS
EVENTS
I COMMITTED
COLLEGE
ABOUT
Heather Vaughn, the junior outstanding infielder from North Carolina and a member of the Carolina Impact 16U team, may have received the best description of the year when her travel ball coach Monte Sherrill said of her:
“She runs like a deer on the interstate with a transfer truck behind it!”
Colorful praise aside, Coach Sherrill—who has won state championships as a high school coach in North Carolina and has also seen impressive success at Pfeiffer University—believes that Heather is a rare talent.
“She has a great glove and is ultra-aggressive,” he adds. She is the real deal, an electric player who throws 68 mph and is a freak at shortstop.”
A varsity player since her Freshman campaign, Heather is a three-year starter at Southern Alamance (Graham, North Carolina) High and this past Spring helped her team win the 3A State Championship as she went 3-for-4 and scored three runs.
Speaking of her team’s state title run, Heather told Extra Inning Softball that “the experience was awesome and it’s something that I will remember for the rest of my life.”
It was doubly special because the underclassman was playing in the infield with her older sister, Niki, a senior first baseman who recently signed to play at Louisburg College in Louisburg, North Carolina:
Congratulations to @sahs_fastpitch slugger @NikiVaughn8 !!!! It's official! She'll continue her career at the next level with @LouisburgCanes ! pic.twitter.com/766pASVbm7
— SAHS Fastpitch (@sahs_fastpitch) November 13, 2021
Earlier this year, Heather was ranked in the Top 10 of the 2023 Extra Elite 100 and added another milestone when she announced shortly after Labor Day that she would take her talents to the ACC as she committed to the University of Virginia.
Here’s more on Heather, who is as likely to be up before the crack of dawn hunting before the sun rises as she is to be working on her formidable softball talents…
*****
Name: HEATHER VAUGHN
Position(s): Middle Infield, Third Base, Outfield
High School: Southern Alamance High School, Graham, NC
Club Team: Carolina Impact 16U – Monte Sherrill
Committed to: University of Virginia
Date Committed: Sept 8, 2021
How did the University of Virginia staff first find you and start recruiting you?
I found out on my visit to UVA that Coach Jo (Joanna Hardin)had been following me since I was 14 years old. I had no clue about recruiting or committing, I just played ball . . . then when September 1 of my Junior year came, Virginia was one of the first colleges to call me and set up an official visit. On the visit, they made me feel so special! They hosted my mom and dad, sister and myself to a very informative, fun-filled weekend with great food and fellowship!
When were you actually offered a scholarship to play for the Cavaliers and what was your reaction to that offer?
It was on September 4 & 5, 2021 that we went on my official visit to Virginia. I was offered on the last day of my visit. I was excited that I will get to attend one of the top universities in the nation, receive a prestigious diploma and not have student loans once finished… how can it get better than that? It’s what I’ve worked for my whole softball career and now it’s a reality! Thank you, UVA, for believing in me!
*** Scroll down to read about Heather’s commit to Virginia and why it was a no-brainer and what the Cav coaches said they loved about the junior’s game…