The fledgling softball program, currently a club sport, at Arkansas State University is working towards becoming NCAA sanctioned. As that work continues, Coach Chris Powers has worked to accumulate talent through clinics and camps. Without scholarships to offer, he’s been able to produce a team that has taken on NCAA, NJCAA, NAIA and NCCAA teams and have success, earning a No. 12 ranking among National Club Softball Association teams, No. 1 in the Mid-America South Conference.
On Wednesday, Aug. 19, Powers added another cog aimed at future success when Bryant’s Kerrigan Allen accepted an invitation to join the team. Allen, the daughter of Charles and Tiffany Allen, plans to attend ASU on an academic scholarship and join the team in the fall of 2016. She’ll be a senior for the Lady Hornets next spring.
Allen played summer ball with GameTime in 2014 then was a spot player for Bryant last spring. She decided to take a different approach during the off-season.
“This summer I wanted to focus on camps, going to different colleges,” she related. “I decided to go to the ASU one first. They liked what they saw and they told me to come back. So I went to one of their skills camps and we hit first then they had me field and then pitch. After I pitched, they offered me.”
“I love ASU,” she stated. “I love the campus. So really, it was a perfect fit. Being from Bryant, of course, I considered UCA. My dad went to UCA so that was always a factor but once I went to ASU I knew I was going to go there.”
As a stellar scholar, Allen said she wants to study athletic training then attend graduate school to become a physical therapist.
“This is obviously a day of celebration for Kerrigan but it’s also a day of celebration for her family,” said Bryant assistant coach Nathan Castaldi. “They’ve spent hours together, sacrificing, working hard for this moment. She’s a pitcher but she doesn’t work with a pitching coach. She said her and her dad spend that time together. It’s an amazing job that they’ve done.
“Getting to where she is today didn’t happen overnight,” he continued. “It didn’t happen when she was a freshman and decided to play for the Lady Hornets. It started when she was young and built that love of the game.
“This shows the hard work, the dedication and commitment that she has put in,” the coach added. “Her sophomore year, she was chosen as the most improved player on the team and that continued on through her junior year. She didn’t just spend time until 5:30 or 6 o’clock working with the team, it was time she spent outside of team practice. She made a true commitment to become a better softball player.”
“I work as hard as I can and try to do my best,” Allen acknowledged.
Asked what Powers said his plan for her is, Allen related, “Because I still have one year (in high school), they said they wanted to save me a spot and they’ll be ready to have me over there.”
“I know ASU is a young program and I thought about what I would want as a coach starting a new program,” Castaldi mentioned. “What type of player would I want? Obviously, I’d want a player who’s a hard worker; who’s willing to put the time in to not just build themselves but build the program to where I would want it to be. I’d want a player who’s coachable, one who’s willing to do what we asked them to do. I’d want a player that has a great attitude, who puts the team first.
“Lastly, I thought about something that may be most important for those coaches at their level,” he said. “I’d want a player who’s a good person and a good student. I’d want someone who, when they left practice or left a game, I would not have to worry about. They’re going to take care of their responsibilities in the classroom. They’re going to get good grades. They’re going to make sure they’re doing the things they’re supposed to do.
“As I went through all those things and thought about it, Kerrigan checked off all of them,” Castaldi concluded. “She meets all of those criteria. Of course, those are all great qualities that are going to pay off for Kerrigan in life too.”
