Olivia Watkins Signs to Play With Akron Racers

Yesterday morning, WKU fans awoke to the news that one of the most dynamic offensive players in Lady Toppers softball history would be continuing her career on the professional stage, as Olivia Watkins signed to play with the Akron Racers of the National Pro Fastpitch league.

Watkins finished her WKU career as the all-time leader in batting average (.380), stolen bases (117) and stolen base attempts (129) and lead the entire nation in that category in 2o14, swiping 55 of them. She also set WKU single season records in 2014 with a .442 batting average, 51 runs scored, 87 hits and the aforementioned stolen base mark.

Racers general manager Joey Arrietta spoke highly of Watkins, and seemed excited about her addition to the team:

"Olivia brings a whole new dimension to our offense. She’s exciting to watch and she’s very solid offensively and defensively."

The Racers have a long and storied history in professional softball. Founded in 1999 as a member of the Women’s Pro Softball League, they have played in the NPF since 2004, and won the NPF’s championship, the Cowles Cup, in 2005. From 2004-2008, the Racers went an impressive 149-94, but went 16-32 in 2o13, which put them in third place of the four place league.

Watkins and her Racers will begin the 2014 season, Akron’s 13th, in just a few days, May 29th, against the 2013 NPF regular season champs and Cowles Cup runners up Chicago Bandits.

We are excited for Olivia and can’t wait to track her status, and are more excited to be able to call her our newest #ProToppers!