Hofer named top player in nation
By BOB PUTNAM
Published June 9, 2005
This was a pitching session that made Dani Hofer more nervous than any big-time softball game.
On Wednesday, the Palm Harbor University High right-hander found out she would be hurling softballs at a dunking booth during a live segment on ESPN2's Cold Pizza .
But the real pressure came moments before when Hofer was named the Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year. She joins an impressive list of previous winners that includes Amanda Freed (1998) and Cat Osterman (2001), who played on the 2004 U.S. Olympic team.
Better still, Hofer is the first player from the East Coast to win the award.
"After that, I really had to be accurate with my throws (in the dunking booth)," Hofer said. "It was such a great honor because (the award) usually involves girls from Texas or California. I thought I was just receiving an award for being named the Florida player of the year. I had no idea it was this big."
The dunking booth encounter went on without a hitch, much like her softball career.
Hofer finished her senior season with a 24-0 record, 403 strikeouts, five walks and an 0.08 ERA (two earned runs) as she helped the Hurricanes (31-0) become the first team in the county to win consecutive state titles and the first team in the state to finish a season with an unbeaten, untied record in more than five years.
Her career numbers are even more ridiculous.
She finished with 1,163 strikeouts, while walking 11 and compiling an ERA of 0.14. Her 13 perfect games rank fourth in national prep softball history.
Those are the type of stats that got Gatorade's attention.
Gatorade planned on giving the award to Hofer at school, but Palm Harbor already had its graduation. Then came the opportunity to present it on Cold Pizza .
"We usually try to make a big deal with the presentation and were trying to come up with a place," said Gatorade's Michael Bulthaus. "ESPN was as big as it gets."
The ESPN gig was just the latest in what has been a whirlwind offseason for Hofer.
Soon after claiming her second straight title, reporters and booking agents swung into action. Hofer has already done a television spot for the Florida High School Athletic Association, and was featured in USA Today two weeks ago.
But Hofer had no idea how much of a celebrity she was until she stepped onto the plane to New York. During the flight, a passenger walked through the aisles and waved her arm in a windmill motion while pointing at Hofer.
"There she is!" said the woman. "That's her! That's the softball girl!"
Turns out, the women's daughter played softball and followed Hofer's career.
The attention died down once Hofer arrived in New York. Flanked by her parents, Ed and Diana, Hofer went sightseeing on Tuesday. She saw Monty Python's Spamalot and toured Times Square and the Statue of Liberty.
When it was time to take center stage on Cold Pizza , Hofer struck a perfect balance between adult polish and teenage winsomeness. She talked with Dana Jacobsen about her stats and how she got started pitching.
Then came the award and her throwing session.
Without warming up, Hofer windmilled a fastball that hit the target and soaked Jacobsen. Hofer then got fellow hosts Jay Crawford and Woody Paige wet.
"That was fun," Hofer said. "My biggest thing was making sure I came close to the target."
The next date on the media blitz is June 25, when Hofer and her teammates will be honored before the Devil Rays game. In July, Hofer will head to Los Angeles as one of the finalists for Gatorade's National Female Athlete Player of the Year.
"The past few weeks have been totally crazy," Hofer said.