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Springville High junior Kaycie Jensen was named the Gatorade Utah Softball Player of the Year Thursday.
The 5-foot-6 right-handed pitcher is the first softball player from Springville to earn the award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character.
The award makes Jensen eligible to be the Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year.
Past winners of Gatorade National Player of the Years awards include Abby Wambach, Derek Jeeter, Mark Sanchez, and Alicia Hollowell.
Jensen posted a 21-6 pitching record along with two saves and had a 1.05 ERA as the Red Devils finished 26-6-1 on the season. She struck out 252 batters in 181 innings pitched and tossed seven shutouts.
She also hit .330 with six home runs, 34 RBIs and a .692 slugging percentage.
"Kaycie Jensen is a fearless competitor," said Springville head coach Jill Thackeray. "Everyone who plays with her wants to play harder and better because of her. Without her, our team doesn't have near the success that we had this year."
Jensen, who has made a verbal commitment to play softball at Dixie State, has maintained a 3.39 grade point average. She volunteers as a youth softball coach and as part of mlultiple community-service initiatives on behalf of her church youth group.
– Tom Wharton