RANKINGS
EVENTS
I COMMITTED
COLLEGE
ABOUT
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 [email protected] and also [email protected].
Here’s our TLI for Friday, Oct. 28, 2022:
*****
EXTRA ELITE SPOTLIGHT: ELLA STEPHENSON
Michigan-committed Ella Stephenson recently talked to Extra Inning Softball about Turnin2-Maloney, swing on the tee, hitting, Alliance Nationals, Ohio Hawks-Harbold, kinesiology, Michigan, Grant and Luke Stephenson, Drake and “Grey’s Anatomy.”
EXTRA ELITE SPOTLIGHT Q&A
Name: Ella Stephenson
Hometown: Algonac, MI
High School: Algonac High
Club Team: Turnin2 18U National-Maloney
Graduation Year: 2023
Height: 5-foot-9
Position: OF
Nickname: N/A
Twitter: @e_stephenson25
Honors: Two-time 1st Team All-State player for softball (2021, 2022); also have played four years of varsity volleyball and basketball.
Travel Ball Highlights/Summer Stats: .541 AVG, 11 HRs, 43 RBIs and 1.594 OPS.
High School Highlights/Stats: .632 AVG, 17 HRs, 64 RBIs and 1.973 OPS.
Tell us about your travel team/organization and how you became involved with them? I’ve been with my head coach, Shawn Maloney, since I was 11 years old, back when the team was first the Michigan Batbusters. I’ve been with him for all these years and couldn’t be more thankful to have had a coach to develop me into a great softball player. Not to mention, all of the years the girls have been so fun to be around. We still have some girls on our team that are on the team when I joined in 11U. The team chemistry we have is unreal, which makes the game that much more fun to play! We ended up switching over to the Turnin2 organization in 15U to get more looks for recruitment. T2 is a great organization that has all the resources to get you recruited.
What are some of your training methods/training routine? I try my best to actively swing on the tee, get reps in front toss and lift as much as possible. Just working on getting stronger and always seeing the ball.
What areas are you focusing on/trying to improve this fall? Hitting is a big one. The pitching this year is very good and I’m glad I get to see it before my freshman year at Michigan. Controlling my count and swinging at good pitches to hit is huge. Having hard contact as much as possible and getting my barrel to the ball. It’s simple, but it makes a world of difference in a successful hitting season.
Can you tell us about your experience at Alliance Nationals this summer? We played in the Alliance in Indianapolis. Our team had a lot of fun. We ended up making it out of a tough pool into Tier 1. So right off the bat we were faced with some really good teams in bracket play. Although the outcome wasn’t what we wanted, we proved we belonged by making that Tier 1, which was a goal of ours.
Which player/team was your toughest opponent and why? I’d say Ohio Hawks-Harbold. We’ve matched up with them ever since I was probably 13 or 14 years old. They have great players as so do we; it’s always been a great game between us two.
What areas are you interested in future occupations and why? I plan on going to into Michigan’s kinesiology school and study movement science. From that, I plan to get my pre-physical therapy bachelor’s degree from U of M. Then I’d go to get my masters elsewhere and go to PT school.
Can you talk about your decision to commit to Michigan? Yeah, so I committed last November. I knew I loved U of M right when I stepped on campus. The resources they have are unbelievable. The staff, the girls, the facilities were everything I wanted at my future school. It felt like home and I knew I wanted to play there.
Who is your sports hero and why? My two older brothers, Grant and Luke. They both play collegiate baseball. Luke plays at Elon University and Grant plays at Xavier University. I’ve always looked up to them ever since I was little. They played sports I wanted to play sports. Especially with our family’s love for baseball, I easily fell in love with softball. They were both huge role models in my young eyes while growing up with them.
What’s the best hype song and why? “Headlines” by Drake. I like that one because it gets me locked in, haha. Plus it’s just a good vibe.
What’s your favorite TV show to binge and why? Probably “Grey’s Anatomy.” They have so many seasons and episodes and it’s so easy to get hooked on watching episode after episode.
Do you have a secret talent/skill? No, I don’t.
Scroll down to see more highlights …