Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Colleges

Kime aims to prove herself in Division I

After spending her freshman season with the HCC Hawks, softball pitcher Allison Kime prepares for play at UCF.

By TERRY JONES
Published June 24, 2005

BRANDON - Allison Kime didn't go into college softball to become just another okay player who had done well back in high school.

In her senior year at Bloomingdale High School in 2004, Kime was a first-team all-state pitcher and Hillsborough County's softball player of the year.

This season - her first one pitching for the Hillsborough Community College Hawks - she was selected as a first-team All-American player by coaches across the United States.

On the state level, she received a host of honors. She was selected pitcher of the year and first-team all-state by officials of the Florida Community College Athletic Association, and she was the HCC team's player of the year.

She also was selected to the first team of the National Junior College Athletic Association's Gulf Coast District.

"All the recognition is appreciated, but I still have the roughest part of college competition ahead," Kime said. "My parents really like the awards. Pitching in college makes me nervous. Everyone is a good hitter. I didn't give up one home run in high school, but I got tagged for one in my first game in college."

By the end of the season, Kime was tagged for five home runs, but she also struck out 350 batters.

Kime originally signed to play for the University of Tampa, but when the scholarship terms she expected didn't materialize, she decided to play with HCC and an old friend, Hawks head coach Ray Seymour.

Before Kime started at HCC, the coaching staff at the University of Central Florida in Orlando contacted her to offer a full scholarship. But Kime already had given her word to Seymour, so she played for the Hawks her freshman season.

"I feel fortunate to have had her for even one year," Seymour said. "She is a person who honors her word and is going to do great at the Division I level also. Not only is she a great pitcher, but she led our team in hitting with a .338 average and 29 RBI."

Seymour said Kime's record of 34-8, 350 strikeouts and ERA of .080 was the best in the country for junior colleges.

"Only three pitchers were selected for the All-American first team and she received more votes than the other two," he said. "Not only is she a strong hitter and pitcher, but she also did great at shortstop." Kime was the only junior college pitcher in the country to win more than 30 games, Seymour said.

Kime said she knew she could pitch on the college level but wasn't sure if others had that confidence in her skills.

"I wanted to prove to myself and others I was not a high school fluke as a pitcher," Kime said. "Next year will be another level for me. The good thing about Division I is there will be three or four pitchers and there won't be so much pressure on me as I had at HCC with only two of us in the rotation."

ERA: 0.080

Strikeouts: 350 (most of any U.S. junior college pitcher)

Pitching record: 34-8 (only U.S. junior college pitcher to win 30 games)

Batting average: .338 (tops for HCC team)

Total RBI: 29 (second on HCC team)

[Last modified June 23, 2005, 01:00:05]