ARLINGTONColorado State University nabbed one of the top softball talents from the Wesco North conference earlier this week, as Arlington High School catcher Sheena Twitchell signed her name on a letter of intent to play for the Rams.
CSU recruited Twitchell from various nation-wide tournaments, including one in Las Vegas and one in Denver. Twitchell competes year round for a traveling team under the direction of coach Art Finney, formerly of Western Washington University.
Its been a long road of development. Twitchell started her softball career in fourth grade playing tee-ball in Arlington and rapidly developing under the tutelage of coach Steve Meyers.
A lot of credit should go to Steve. He got the girls going, taught them the basics of the game, said Jerry Twitchell, Sheenas father.
As her game matured, Twitchell began playing for an American Softball Association team, starring on an eventual state champion. Twitchell entered high school with high expectations of success. She played varsity fastpitch all four years.
Her talent extends far beyond the field as well. Prior to focusing on softball, Twitchell excelled as a track athlete. In the classroom she holds a flawless 4.0 grade point average.
Her goal at CSU is to study medicine as the school has one of the west coasts most competitive pre-med programs.
With all the adulation and success you might think it would go to her head, but Sheena remains humble and a sparkplug of enthusiasm for those around her. Her teammates value her leadership, as she was chosen team captain as a senior this season. Her coaches are equally impressed with her hard work and intensity.
Coach Danny Eng felt lucky to have Twitchell on his roster.
Shes a great young lady. And shes been a huge asset for me to have in my first year with Arlington. She takes the leadership role upon herself. CSU will be getting a great softball player and a great person.
Twitchell comes from an athletic family, her older brother Amron played basketball and baseball and her father was a basketball player as well.
Amron saw his own role in making her tough.
I used to beat her down when she was younger. Shes really a great kid, a hard worker.
Varsity assistant coach Brooke Dalgaard agreed.
Shes an excellent captain because shes always working hard. Her knowledge of the game sets her apart from other players. Shes the best catcher in the league but she could play anywhere and be just fine because of her innate ability to analyze the game.
Talking to Twitchell, its easy to see shes quite different on the field and off. Her bubbly personality bonded the varsity and junior varsity teams this year in a way not necessarily common to high school athletics. Hearing her tell her own story, she seemed almost amused by the whole process of recruitment.
Said Twitchell.
I looked at Santa Clara as well, but they did not have a pre-med program. I went down to visit Colorado State and it seemed to be a better fit.
She was met at the airport and stayed in the dorms with her future teammates. Unfortunately the schedule wasnt glamorous for Twitchell while she was on campus.
The team had weightlifting at 6 a.m., so we woke up at 5 a.m. Recruiting rules only allowed for me to be on campus for 48 hours, so I went to class one day, and watched the team play a doubleheader.
It all fit together for Twitchell who liked the girls on the team and the coaching staff enough to formally commit to CSU. At her signing dinner, held at La Hacienda in Arlington, teammate Kristen Allen teased her.
Youre signing your life away!
The players laughed as Sheena scrawled her name across the dotted line on her scholarship. The best for Twitchell is yet to come.