Meet Shannon Smith

Name: Shannon Smith

Class Year: 2013

Position, Sport: Pitcher/First base, Softball

Why is Shannon Smith the Patch Player of the Week?

Shannon Smith is a sophomore starting pitcher for the Milford Scarlett Hawks’ varsity softball team and has helped the team get out to a solid 5-0 start (as of April 26). In one of the Hawks’ most recent games, Smith tossed a no-hitter against Leominster on April 22. She worked with a 1-0 lead for most of the game until the Hawks grabbed a run in the top of the seventh to win 2-0. Smith struck out 15 players on the day, on her way to her fifth win of the season.

She has dominated the competition this year, throwing two one-hitters to go along with her first no-hitter of 2011. But no-hitters aren’t anything new to the 2010 Gatorade Softball Player of the Year, as Smith threw two no-no’s last season as a freshman. She also compiled a 14-0 record to go along with a slim 0.36 ERA for the Hawks last year.

Smith is also a bright student and spends her time off the field participating in the school orchestra, as well as swimming for the Hawks’ swim team in the fall.

What college or professional athlete inspires you and why?

My sister is a big inspiration—she has pitched in college—but she has had a big influence on how I act and just my mannerisms and softball in general. She’s the reason why I started pitching in the first place and she's probably the biggest person that I look up to in the game—even though she doesn’t pitch anymore, she just plays the field. But she’s probably the biggest influence on me (Smith’s sister, Andrea, now plays for C.W. Post’s softball team).

What is your most memorable experience as an athlete so far?

The most memorable moment was probably when I was younger, I was playing 12-under softball for the Central Massachusetts Thunder and we went to the national tournament, which was in Ohio that year, and we made a big run. We came in second at nationals, which is a huge deal and we got a trophy, which was over five feet tall and bigger than the whole team at the time. We were there for like a week and it was just game after game after game, and we battled really well.

Also, of course states last year, we lost though. We had a lot of close games right in a row, one after another, like the St. Peter Marian game, the Amherst game and just a lot of games were very close. It was a very good stretch, though.

What are your plans for the future athletically and academically?

I’m obviously going to play softball for the rest of my two years at Milford and then I plan on playing in college, too. Then maybe after college play for the national team, which is what I would like to do.

Academically, I’m looking to become a physical therapist or a sports trainer, that’s what I’m planning to study in college. I’ve had an interest in physical therapy for a while. I pulled my hip flexor over the summer. My friend’s mom was a physical therapist and I went to her, and she was really helpful. I learned a lot and it sort of sparked my interest.