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| Sign of a Tiger |
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| Written by Staff report / Tracy Press / | |
| Thursday, 22 November 2007 | |
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Tracy High catcher signs with Memphis.  Moreno slides into third base ahead of the throw against McQueen High in April. She was also recruited by programs from Sacramento and San Diego states. Press file photo  Tracy High catcher Nikki Moreno signs a letter of intent to play for the University of Memphis. Among the group on hand are father Mario (from left), sister Sammie, All-American Sports Academy’s Debbie Nelson, coach Greg Smith and friend Kayla Scialabba. Photo by Glenn Moore/Tracy Press. But, luckily for her, the special attention resulted in a college scholarship. Scouts from the University of Memphis’ softball team first noticed the Tracy High senior in 2006 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The Tigers coaching staff was scouting one of Moreno’s All-American Sports Academy travel teammates, but as soon as the coaches laid eyes on Moreno’s skills at and behind the plate, they made it a priority to keep tabs on the power-hitting catcher. Memphis coach Windy Thees’ staff pursued Moreno from Las Vegas to Colorado and back to California. After visits to Sacramento and San Diego state universities Moreno flew out to Tennessee in August to visit the Memphis campus. The school and program made an immediate impression. “I felt like I was at home already,” she said Saturday, mere days after signing her national letter of intent to play for the Division I Tigers. “The girls and the coaches made me feel like I had known them for a while.” Moreno said Thees wants her to redshirt her freshman year, but the 2007 San Joaquin Athletic Association’s Most Valuable Player wants to play. “I’m going to go in and try to beat out the other catchers or play some infield,” she said, noting that it might be tough to outdo the upperclassmen. “We’ll see.” Thees praised the All-American travel team, of which Moreno has been a part for three seasons. But her high school program has been successful, winning the last two SJAA titles. Moreno is the second Bulldog to sign with a Division I program in as many seasons. Tracy coach Greg Smith called Moreno a quiet leader and said she could have easily played varsity as a freshman. Smith added that Moreno’s status as an elite softball player never disrupted the chemistry of the team — and that throughout it all, playing softball since she was a 5-year-old with the Tracy Express and starting year-round soon after that, the game has stayed fun for her. The catcher becomes the sixth Californian on the Memphis roster and the second to sign this year. She is the only Tiger from Northern California. Four others are from the San Diego area, and the fifth hails from Valencia. Moreno, a San Jose native who moved to Tracy in 1992, plans to study business with an idea of a career in law enforcement. Her father, Mario, is a longtime softball coach and a lieutenant with the Sunnyvale Police Department.
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 22 November 2007 ) |
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