Get on board with Extra Inning Softball’s regular feature, The Last Inning!
We are scouring the Internet and Social Media and keeping our ears to the street for the latest going on in the softball community.
To contribute information, insights, thoughts or content ideas, email us at info@extrainningsoftball.com and also los.extrainningsoftball@gmail.com.
Here’s our TLI for Monday, Jan. 17:
*****
EXTRA SPOTLIGHT
With the the rise of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 across the nation, OF/UT Bianca Diamond, #362 in the Class of 2022, talked about dealing with Covid, the recruiting process and getting ready for Ohana Tigers Gold-Quarles and her senior season with Summit High in California.
EXTRA SPOTLIGHT Q&A
Name: Bianca Diamond
Hometown: Fontana, CA
High School: Summit High
Club Team: Ohana Tigers Gold-Quarles 18U
Graduation Year: 2022
Height: 5-foot-5
Position: OF/UT
Nickname: “B”
Twitter: @Bianca_Diamond_
Honors: All-Sunkist League 1st Team (2019-21) and Honorable Mention All-County Team.
Travel Ball Highlights: Led the team in batting with a .443 AVG against power pool teams this fall.
High School Highlights: Batted .440 with 33 hits in 75 at bats as a freshman, batted .429 (15 of 35) in abbreviated sophomore year and was 23 of 45 as a junior; batted 71 of 155 overall with only two errors in three years; and was featured twice in the IE Preps Magazine as one of the top players in the Inland Empire.
Tell us about your travel team/organization and how you became involved with them?
I started playing with the Ohana Tigers Gold team in September of 2020 after playing for E1 Prospects for two years. I left E1 after my older sister, Jennifer, stopped playing softball and I needed a more competitive team. Joey Quarles heard I had left and invited me to a practice and the girls accepted me right away and I really Liked Joey and the other coaches.
Can you talk about playing softball in Southern California during the COVID-19 pandemic and some of the challenges you’ve faced?
We went to Phoenix, AZ, during Covid four times to play; Bullhead City once and Lake Havasu once, all in two months time. We played a few friendlies here in CA, but my team had 16 girls and 11 of them were already committed to college, so we started off this year with only four 2022 girls before tryouts. I also played for Team USA Red in Colorado at the TCS International Challenge in June and made the USA All-Star team that played a team of girls from the other 20 international teams. Colorado was the highlight of the year. It was an amazing two weeks there and the teams we played were outstanding. I made some new friends, who I still talk to today.
Can you talk about your recruiting process?
What are some of the challenges you’ve faced and what are the things you’re doing? I was using the website Sportsrecruits.com prior to playing for Ohana. The events we went to mainly had junior college coaches and a few D2 schools and I was not getting many looks. Since coming to Ohana the events we play are much better events and against the best teams in the West. I joined fastpitchscout.com website to help with recruiting and it’s been very successful for me. It’s been a challenge for me as a 2022 because coaches keep telling me they don’t have money for my class and they are recruiting 2023 girls already. I have had several offers recently, but have turned them down as two of the schools didn’t really have what I wanted and the third I liked very much, but athletic money was minimal. I have had some recent inquiries, but nothing solid and with this new Covid situation I am worried it will affect me again.
What are you looking for in a future college?
I am looking for a nice looking campus where I can experience the college atmosphere. I am willing to go out of state anywhere.
What were some of the highlights for your club team this fall?
The only big highlight we had this fall was a tournament in Lake Elsinore, CA. We played Tony Rico’s Firecrackers with a really big crowd of college coaches watching.
What should we expect from your club team this summer?
We will be playing all the major showcase events this summer. Instead of the TCS Sparkler we are going to the Boulder IDT in June. My team is a mix of 2022 and 2023 girls and we have one 2024, so we are hoping for some good exposure. Our practices are very good.
What should we expect from your high school team this spring?
My high school team went to the playoffs last year, but we lost our top pitcher and although our offense and defense will be good, we only have one pitcher on the team.
What’s your most memorable softball story?
Last year, while in Gilbert, AZ, our truck was broken into at the Field of Dreams during a game. All my clothes were taken as were some other items, but we had to drive home in the cold with NO windows on the passenger side of the truck. Again, in Lake Havasu after a late game we went to buy a pizza to take back to our hotel, while waiting at a light, a car came around the corner too fast and hit our truck head on and then he took off. We couldn’t follow him because metal was up against our tire. My dad took a sawzall to it the next day and we were able to drive home the next morning after our games.
*****
*** Scroll down to check out News and Notes and more Signings & Commitments!
