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For this edition of Throwback Thursday, we head back to April 27, 2018 when this article on Jasmine Polk came out just after the Early Recruiting rules (no recruiting contact until Sept. 1 of an athlete’s junior year) went into effect.
The first 2023 grad to commit to a Pac-12 school, Jasmine will be a strong candidate to be included in the Extra Elite 100 for her class which starts this Monday, March 11.
In this profile piece we looked at 11 attributes the standout from Arizona exhibited to become a commit to the Cal Bears–and qualities any good softball player should have!
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11 Traits Jasmine Polk Developed to Become the First 2023 Pac-12 CommitWe won’t be seeing underclassmen committing anymore—well, at least not publicly (kidding, kidding)—but there sure was a big run in the last few months on 8th, 7th and a pair of six graders.
According to our Extra Inning Softball Signing/Verbal Database, there were 76 in the 2022 class, 16 verbals from 2023 grads and the two 2024’s going to Florida.
Certainly players will keep working hard to be ready for the offer whenever it may come, but have you stopped to think what it takes for a young player to be so developed and talented to even BE considered for an offer before they’ve played their first high school game?
We reported on February 11th how SS/UT Jasmine Polk from Yuma, Arizona become the first 7th grader to commit to a Pac-12 school when she verballed to Cal on Feb. 6.
Here’s an update on Jasmine, who plays for Marty Tyson’s Corona Angel’s team based in Southern California, and what she’s done to be the highly coveted player she is!
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11 Traits Jasmine Polk Developed to Become the First 2023 Pac-12 Commit
originally published on Extra Inning Softball April 27, 2018
You want to know what it takes to be a Pac-12 caliber recruit in the 7th grade? You want to build the prototype prospect who can been a game-changer, here’s what you’d want (and scouts say Jasmine has!)…
1. Physical Tools
Last week, Jasmine’s bat speed was measured at 81 mph by her Angels coach Marty Tyson. Jasmine has the physical tools needed to play softball in every aspect of the game. Jasmine was tested at the OnDeck West Coast Elite Camp last November having a 75 right hand grip (if you don’t know, that’s very good!). Her OnDeck shuttle time was 4.74 secs and she is a natural athlete and is built like one.
She is also very fast and is always a threat to make an inside-the-park homerun because of her speed running the bases (she has hit four such home runs this year). Jasmine also has the strength to drive the ball OVER the fence..
It hasn’t hurt that she has come from a family of athletes: her dad was a running back at UTEP, her mom a wrestler, and her grandmother a javelin thrower. Success on the field certainly appears to be in the DNA.
2. Mental Fortitude
“Mental toughness is one of Jasmine’s strengths,” believes her mother. “Jasmine is big on her faith and gains a lot of her mental strength though Christ. Jasmine has also had to deal with being away from home four days a week to pursue her passion for the sport.”
She also has had to endure the passing of her grand whom she lost last Christmas.
“Softball helped her overcome it and more so when Coach Mike Smith and Coach Patty Gasso suffered similar losses through the same time frames and got their strength from their faith and their passion,” adds Rosa Craven, her mother.
“Jasmine has had to deal with the adversity that comes with softball, some of it early on, and she used that to build character and strength instead of allowing it to push her to quit. She worked three times as hard and refused to give up on her dreams.”
“When she wasn’t given the opportunity to compete for the position she wanted, she learned all the other ones so that she could have time on that field regardless of where it was at. She was told at times that she was not recruitable, that she didn’t know how to play softball, that she didn’t know the right way to get an out, and at some points, she rode the bench more than she played. That did not stop her. She was the loudest cheerleader from that bench and every time she was out on that field she made plays, hit homeruns, talked her team up, called out plays and rocked it.”