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ABOUT
Cassadie “Sadie” Armstrong is a 5-foot-10 pitcher/infielder from Portland, Maine who is one of the fastest-rising prospects in the Class of 2023.
A regular blogger for Extra Inning Softball, she has been lauded for her keen insights on topics ranging from gender equality to wearing facemasks in softball.
Sadie’s honors have included being named a two-time All American by USA Softball, a member of USSSA Elite Select Futures and chosen as a Pre-Season Rookie by Under Armour Softball Factory thanks to a 62 mph screwball and a 61 mph dropball with consistent ball exit velocity speeds in the high 60s to low 70s.
This summer she led her USA All American Northeast Region One team to a 5th place finish at the USA Softball All-American Games with a 0.00 ERA.
The fall season kicks off for the talented pitcher this weekend at the ProSwings Power50 tournament and she’ll also be at the D9 Sun Classic, Atlanta Veterans, Scenic City and Bolts Showcase events as well as at a few local ones. Sadie will be guesting with several programs wearing Firecrackers, Thunderbolts and Team NC jerseys as she continues to hone her skills.
In her latest blog, the Northeast native expresses her strong opinions on the crow hop in pitching and why doing it comes down to a matter of integrity…
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When I was a little kid, my mother used to read a book to us at bedtime called “Uncle Arthur’s Bedtime Stories” and it was a giant book of morals.
This book actually used the word “mustn’t” and other old-timey words but the lessons were not stale. Of all the stories in this awesome book, (it is seriously the best children’s book I have ever read if you can get past the ancient sounding language) one story always stood out to me.
My very favorite was a story called “The Two Caroline’s” about a little girl who was an absolute nightmare when she was at home. She was fresh-mouthed to her parents and wouldn’t complete a chore without backtalk. She was spoiled, rude and entitled.
Well, during a parent-teacher conference, Caroline’s parents were pleasantly surprised to learn about what a well-mannered, polite and friendly girl that Caroline was when she was at school. Everyone thought she was so lovely, kind, considerate and generous.
But, Caroline’s teacher was even more surprised to learn that the darling little angel she taught in class was a complete knucklehead at home toward her family. Caroline’s teacher proposed to the parents that they should set up a sting operation (although I don’t think they used such a modern term. Caroline “shant” be able to continue to behave this way, or Mother and Father would certainly be “sore”!).
Unbeknownst to Caroline, the next afternoon, the teacher sat hidden in the dining room of Caroline’s home as their surprise dinner guest. When Caroline came home from school, she stomped in the doorway with a storm cloud over her head, and predictably acted like her usual obnoxious self (Think Nellie Oleson on Little House On the Prairie having a tantrum).
She was rude, demanding and disrespectful.
When Caroline’s teacher had heard enough, she made herself known and Caroline collapsed in a heap right there on the kitchen floor from the shame of having her teacher know how rotten she behaved outside of the classroom and the teacher was disgusted and disappointed. Caroline vowed to change her ways after that.
This story stuck with me for two reasons.
First, when I came home from school, I always used to check around the corner to make sure that there were no surprise dinner guests! Second, I always remember that, that which is done in the dark will come to light (Matthew 10:26, Luke 8:17 & 12:2).
I felt like this was a timely topic for my blog because Halloween is approaching. Have you ever been Trick–or–Treating and seen a giant basket of candy on someone’s steps with a “Take One” sign next to it?
Whenever I would see this sign, I would stress out. I knew that there was always one kid in the group who would push the limit and think they were getting away with something by taking two candies instead of one. It seemed like stealing to me and I remembered that the kid who took beyond what was offered had shown me who s/he was and was exposed like Caroline was. I felt complicit even though I would speak up to tell that kid that it was wrong.
