MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Hawai'i softball pitcher Stephanie Ricketts was the 10th overall pick in the third round of today's National Pro Fastpitch Senior Draft. Ricketts was selected by the defending league-champion Chicago Bandits. She is just the second Rainbow Wahine to ever be drafted by the NPF.
Ricketts is currently 10-0 this season with five shutouts. In 64.0 innings, she has 18 walks with 78 strikeouts while holding opponents to a .138 batting average. This past weekend, Ricketts became UH's all-time winningest pitcher with her 83rd and 84th career wins respectively, passing former UH great Kelly Gentle's record of 82 set in 1999. Ricketts is already UH's career strikeouts leader (667) since last season. She is currently the reigning WAC Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season and ninth time in her career.
Stephanie is the second member of the Ricketts family to be drafted into the NPF. Her older sister Samantha was selected as the 12th overall pick in the 2009 NPF draft by the Akron Racers where she played for two seasons. The elder Ricketts is currently an assistant coach at Wichita State after spending the past six seasons as a player then as a coaching staff member.
Former UH All-American Kate Robinson is the only other UH player to ever be drafted into the NPF. She was selected in the second round, No. 11 overall by the Akron Racers. Robinson, the older sister of current Rainbow Wahine softballer Sarah Robinson, played for two seasons in Akron before heading overseas to continue her professional career in the Netherlands and in Italy.
Former UH catcher Denise Dahlberg also played in the NPF for the Texas Thunder after she graduated in 2005.
The only other Hawai‘i player to be drafted in an American professional league was standout Dana Degen in 2000 Women's Pro Softball League, which was a precursor to the NPF that started in 2002. Degen, who also played for the Akron Racers in 2002 and 2004.