Throwback Thursday: Auburn’s Abbey Smith… Current SEC Outfielder & Under Armour Catalog Model!

Sophomore Abbey Smith, an outfielder for the Auburn Tigers, which is now 33-13 on the season and ranked #22 in this week’s Extra Inning Softball Top 25, has been busy on and off the field this year.

Abbey is hitting .333 on the season in 45 games for the Tigers and leads the team with 14 steals in 16 attempts.

Last Friday, in a 5-3 win over LSU, she was inserted into left field and had the rare honor of recording all three outs in the top of the 6^th inning, using her great speed to run down balls that many outfielders may not have reached.

Here’s video of that busy inning for the speedy left fielder:

With the new world of NIL deals and athletes able to do work outside of their collegiate athletic endeavors, Abbey also now has the distinction of appearing in an ad on the Under Armour online catalog page.

That’s right… go to the “Women’s Athletic Shorts” page (click HERE to access it) and when you scroll down to the second row of pictures, you’ll come across an image with four female athletes running… the one on the left in the black shirt and red shorts is Abbey!

That photo, according to the athlete’s father, Mike, will also be appearing in media collateral for Dicks Sporting Goods as well as Kohls department stores later this month.

How, we asked, did Abbey enter the world of athletic apparel modeling?

“I got an email about it asking if I would be interested as they wanted to use Auburn softball players,” the college athlete explains as the invite was extended through the SEC school which is sponsored by Under Armour.

For her part, Abbey was paid a small stipend and got to keep the clothes… and now may have a foray into another line of work in and around her studies and softball!

One of six siblings, the Auburn sophomore is majoring in Exercise Science and we at Extra Inning Softball have long been impressed with Abbey on and off the field.

Going back to her pre-college career, here are a few articles we featured on her when she was a high school softball player at James Bowie High in Austin, Texas as well as a Top 100 club player for her Mojo travel ball program…

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Social Media: 2021 Auburn Signee Abbey Smith’s “A Softball Isn’t Soft” Video Blows Up on TikTok!

Originally published March 19, 2021 on Extra Inning Softball

Last summer, while playing for Tennessee Mojo 2021, Auburn signee Abbey Smith scored on a play but in the process of sliding across the plate landed on top to the softball.

Yea, it was as bad as it sounded… if not worse for the speedy outfield… who was ranked in the Top 40 of the 2021 Extra Elite 100and also an elite track competitor.

In video taken of the slide, you can see she immediately jumps up in pain and limps towards the dugout.

Abbey immediately knew the play at the plate would leave a mark.

“I figured there was going to be a bruise,” she explains, “because I bruise easily as it is. However, I thought it would be a normal bruise and didn’t know it would turn basically black.”

The innocuous slide caused a huge contusion on her left leg and during the ensuing weeks Abbey documented her bruising with photos and video. She got the idea to share the experience on TikTok in a nicely assembled video under the theme “for people who say softballs are ‘soft’ and don’t hurt.”

Sometime during the next couple of weeks, she documented her bruising & created a TikTok video about Softballs not being soft. She posted it on TikTok and thought maybe a few people would enjoy the irony of her statement.

A “few people” has, however, become 2.7 million views, almost 775k likes and over 15 thousand comments!

“When I first posted the TikTok,, “Abbey admits. “I didn’t think it would blow up. When it got over 100K likes, I was in such shock. Then I just kept checking it and kept seeing the numbers go up.”

Today, Abbey—who has persevered through shoulder surgery and is back playing high school ball for her James Bowie High team in Austin, Texas—seems no worse for the wear as she went 7-for-7 with two walks, six runs schooled and a crazy 2.428 OPS in two games last week. For the year she’s hitting .667 with a .691 on-base percentage and is 17-for-17 in steals.

Still, she says although she still has her fantastic track speed, she has a souvenir from the slide.

“The bruise didn’t go away for about two months or possibly more,” she recalls of the painful injury from about nine months ago. “I didn’t let the bruise limit me but it definitely hurt when I slid for a while after. Also, the swelling and a knot under the bruise, is still here to this day.”

Here is the TikTok video…

@absmith20

yes i landed on the ball

♬ Wraith (Y2K Remix) – Ro Ransom

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Recruiting Spotlight: How Auburn Commit Abbey Smith Persevered Through a Shoulder Injury, Surgery & Rehab

Originally published Jan. 30, 2020 on Extra Inning Softball

We’ve followed the career of Abbey Smith, a talented outfielder from Austin, Texas, for several years. Last year, she was an Extra Inning Softball 1^st Team High School All-American after she batted .630 and went 25-for-25 in steals for James Bowie High and last week she made the 2021 Extra Elite 100 list.

You can also read more about her in a profile we did on her last summer highlighting all her softball and track accomplishments.

However, it’s not been an easy road the six months for Abbey, an Auburn commit since 2017, who had a shoulder injury that ultimately resulted in her needing surgery last June.

Here’s how she persevered through the process of healing and showing how badly she wanted to play for the Auburn Tigers….

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Abbey Smith’s first shoulder injury occurred in September of 2018, which caused her to miss her Fall 2018 club season with the Hotshots Premier 18U club team out of Texas.

After nearly two months of physical therapy, Abbey returned last spring to play for James Bowie High School and lead the team to a Texas UIL playoff appearance.

She earned District 25-6A All District Honors and was named the District’s Offensive Player of the Year.  In addition, she also earned 1st Team Honors on the All Central Texas team and the Texas Girls Coaches Association All-State Team as well as a 1^st Team High School All-American Outfielder by Extra Inning Softball.

Unfortunately, however, at her first Hotshots practice of the summer season, Abbey aggravated the same shoulder diving for a sinking line drive.  Her orthopedic doctor suggested that Abbey should undergo surgery to repair the damage. Ultimately, she had surgery in June 2019 to repair what was a slightly torn labrum in her non-throwing shoulder.

The athlete and her family texted Auburn Head Coach Mickey Dean to make him aware of the injury and Abbey and her father, Mike Smith, traveled to the Auburn Softball Camp only two weeks after her surgery to talk to Coach Dean and assure him that she would have a full recovery.

“We wanted to talk to Coach Dean face-to-face,” Abbey explains, “and let him know that I was going to work hard to be able to return to the softball field.”

Dedicating herself to coming back better than ever, the multi-sport star went to physical therapy twice a week and spent countless hours in the trainer’s room at Bowie High School working on her range of motion.

Ahead of schedule, Abbey was cleared to start swinging a bat and throwing in early September.  She contacted her high school track coach who designed a track workout to help her keep up her speed.  Finally, her doctor cleared her for softball activities without any sliding or diving in October.

“During rehab I was focused on doing everything possible to get back on the field as soon as possible,” Abbey says. “As soon as I was able to remove the sling, I contacted my track coach for workouts.  If I couldn’t work on softball, l I knew I could work on speed and endurance. I was also told that running allowed for natural arm movements to help with my range of motion.”

One of the most difficult parts of rehabbing, the Texan teen admits, was not pushing herself too hard too fast to get back on the field.

“My coaches, track and hitting, always reminded me to gradually increase the intensity,” Abbey continues. “When I work out, I always want to go full power, so this was the hardest part of recovery—not always working to my full ability. My hitting coach and I decided this was the perfect time to work on the little details of my swing.”

The injury and subsequent rehab also played a factor in Abbey deciding to play for a club team outside of Texas.

“We contacted Coach Brooks Cherry of Tennessee Mojo,” Mike Smith explains, “because Abbey felt that playing for the Mojo organization would give her more opportunities for the Auburn coaching staff to monitor her progress and would also give her a chance to play with more SEC commits during the upcoming travel ball season.”

On her unofficial visit last November, Coach Dean affirmed Auburn’s commitment to Abbey.

“He told me that her desire to travel to Auburn to meet with him and hang out with her fellow commits for the day, even though she was in a sling, told the coaching staff everything they needed to know about her commitment to the Auburn program,” the athlete’s father adds.

On December 4, Abbey received clearance to resume all softball activities.  She texted Coach Dean, who promptly responded back, “YAYYYYY!”

Four weeks ago, on January 3, 2020, Abbey made her return to the Plains of Auburn University to participate in the Auburn Winter Camp where she was put her through a strenuous workout and, according to those that were there, performed as she had before the injury.

Having committed on April 12, 2017 before Coach Dean took over the reins at Auburn five months later, Abbey is the only remaining commit from the previous coaching staff. With her 2.62 home-to-first speed and great athletic skills—not to mention a 4.2 GPA in Pre-AP and AP Classes—it’s not hard to see why she is SEC bound.

Still, sometimes it’s not the success in competition that proves an athlete’s mettle, it’s how he or she responds in the face of adversity. For Abbey Smith, her pushing through her injury, surgery and rehab and her dedication to the Auburn softball program showed more about her character than anything she could have done between the lines.

— Brentt Eads, Extra Inning Softball

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2019 High School All-American Candidate Abbey Smith: A Blur on the Softball Field & Track!

Originally published July 8, 2019 on Extra Inning Softball

Later today we will begin our reveal of the 2019 Extra Inning Softball High School All-American Teams.

One of the fastest to make the 2019 All-American squads (spoiler alert!) will be Abbey Smith, who we’ve tracked for several years and seen her great athleticism at each step of the way.

A standout student-athlete who committed to Auburn on April 12, 2017, she is the prototype outfielder who can run down almost everything in the grass and has an arm that has been deadly to baserunners trying to advance an extra base.

Here’s a closer look at Abbey and her accomplishments in softball—and track—over the last couple of years…

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Player’s Name: ABBEY SMITH
High School (City/State): James Bowie (Austin, Texas)
Grad Year: 2021
Position: Centerfield
Team Record: 15-13
School Note: team took 3rd Place -in Texas District 25-6A / UIL Playoff Qualified
Club Team: Diamond Hotshots 18U Premier
GPA: 4.0 (All Pre-AP & AP Classes)
College: Auburn
Height: 5-foot-8
Measurables:

• Home to First: 2.62 seconds
• 5-10-5 Shuttle: 4.51 seconds
• Overhand Velocity: 68 mph
• Broad Jump: 7’4″

Coach’s Comment: “Abbey has a dedication to hard work in both her school classes and on the softball field.  She has displayed leadership abilities both on and off the field and has been a leader on her high school team as a Freshman & Sophomore and on her travel teams, even though she has played up since the age of 9. Abbey has led her high school team to back-to-back UIL playoff appearances and, in the classroom, she has maintained a 4.0 GPA while playing varsity softball and running varsity track as a freshman and sophomore.” – Head Coach Elizabeth Wissel, James Bowie High School

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2019 High School Statistics: James Bowie High School

• Batting Average: .574
• On-Base Percentage: .630
• Hits: 52
• Steals: 1.000% (25-for-25)
• Fielding Percentage: .969 (62 total chances)
• Assists: 11 Outfield Assists (seven outs at home plate / six outs to end an inning / three double plays)
• Errors: 2 (65 total chances)

2018 High School Statistics: James Bowie High School

• Team Record:  12-10 (3rd Place – Texas District 14-6A / UIL Playoff Qualified)
• Batting Average: .575
• On-Base Percentage: .609
• Hits: 46
• Steals: 1.000% (23-for-23)
• Fielding Percentage: .947
• Assists: 7 (five outs at home plate)
• Errors: 2

2019 High School Softball Awards

• All State: All State 6A by Texas Girls Coaches Association & Texas Sports Writers Association
• All Central Texas: All CenTex by Austin American Statesman
• District 25-6A Awards: Offensive Player of the Year, 1st Team All District, All Academic
• Austin Independent School District: 2019 Top Performer – Softball
• James Bowie High School: Team MVP

2018 High School Softball Awards

• All State: All State 6A by Texas Girls Coaches Association & Texas Sports Writers Association
• All Central Texas: All CenTex by Austin American Statesman
• District 14-6A Awards: Newcomer of the Year, 1st Team All District, All Academic
• Austin Independent School District: 2018 Top Performer – Softball
• James Bowie High School: Team MVP (1st Freshman ever selected)

2018 Club Team Statistics: Diamond Sports Hotshots Premier

• Team Record: 33-10-1 (USSSA WFC World Champions)
• Batting Average: .471
• On-Base Percentage: .562
• Hits: 57
• Steals: .950 (38-for-40)
• Fielding Percentage: .953 (43 total chances)
• Assists: 2
• Errors: 2

Club Team Accomplishments:

• Hotshots Premier 16U: 2018 USA Elite Select WFC CHAMPIONS, 11th Place – Colorado Sparkler Power Pool, 9th Place – PGF
• Impact Gold National Team 14U: 2017 USSSA WFC CHAMPIONS, Colorado Sparkler Power Pool, PGF Qualifier
• Blaze Futures 14U: 2016 Texas Jr Gold Cup (2nd), 2017 USA Elite Select World Championship Qualifier
• Blaze Futures 14U: 2015 Texas Jr Gold Cup (3rd), 2016 PGF Nationals, Boulder IDT (17th)
• Blaze 12U: 2015 PGF Nationals (Tied 9th), Colorado Sparkler Jr (Tied 5th), Texas Bombers Shootout (4th)

Individual Softball Accomplishments & Awards

• 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017: UnderArmour Softball Factory – Pre-Season All American
• 2019: EXTRA INNING SOFTBALL – Ranked # 51 in Extra Elite 100, Ranked #9 in Class of 2021 Outfielders,
• 2018: EXOS 5-Tool Showcase (Frisco, TX) – Ranked #2 Nationally
• 2017: Faster2First (Dallas, TX) – Top Performer
• 2017, 2016: USA Elite Select30 – 1st Team All American
• 2017, 2016, 2015: USSSA All American & Top Performer (South East Region)
• 2017 MLB Pitch, Hit & Run: National Champion, Team Champion – Houston Astros
• 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013 MLB Pitch, Hit & Run: Team Champion – Houston Astros

Additional High School Sports

• Varsity Track:
  • 2018 District 14-6A Champions 4 x 200 Relay; Regional Qualifier;
  • Awards – District 14-6A All-Academic & Bowie HS Track’s 2018 Newcomer of the Year);
  • 2019 District 25-6A Champions 4 x 200 Relay; Regional Qualifier;
  • Awards – District 25-6A All-Academic & Bowie HS Track’s 2019 Best Runner)
• Freshman Volleyball Team: Freshman (District Champions)

Extra-Curricular Activities & Community Service

• Coats for Kids: 9 years (providing clothing for Austin’s homeless)
• Beyond the Bases: 8 years (collecting sports equipment donations for softball & baseball players in need)
• Oak Hill Youth Sports Association: 5 years (camp counselor & umpire)
• Operation Turkey: 4 years (deeding Austin’s homeless during Thanksgiving)
• Bannockburn Christian Academy: 2 years (volunteer during school activities)
• Austin Police Dept Blue Santa Parade: 2 years (toy collection for needy children)

Noteworthy

• In 2017, Abbey was the “MLB Pitch, Hit & Run” National Champion & the Team Champion for the World Series Champion Houston Astros.
• In 2013, she first won the Houston Astros’ Team Champion at the 10U level and would win the Pitch, Hit & Run Team Championship for a MLB Pitch, Hit & Run record of five years in a row.
• In addition, Abbey still holds the MLB Pitch, Hit & Run Softball records in hitting & running.