Kiki ?Stoked? to Play First Pro Softball Game in Chicago

Huskers in Pro Softball - 2016

Kiki Stokes on Twitter

Randy York N-Sider

Official Blog of the Huskers

The first day of the rest of Kiki Stokes' life begins tonight when Nebraska’s two-time NCAA All-American begins a career in the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) softball league. Talk about being in a league of her own. Shortly after wearing Husker colors in an NFCA softball regional final against Missouri in Columbia, Kiki has to be stoked to be the sixth overall 2016 NPF draft choice – the highest such honor in Nebraska softball history.

Talk about twin twists of irony. Guess which team drafted Stokes, the Olathe, Kan., native, two-time captain and two-time first-team All-Big Ten and two-time Big Ten all-tournament selection. Move to the head of the class if you knew that Stokes, a 5-foot-5 outfielder, was the first-round pick of Houston’s Scrap Yard Dawgs expansion franchise.

Before raving about a heartfelt letter that Stokes wrote to softball players anywhere and everywhere, based on her Nebraska experience, we feel compelled to point out who the Scrap Yard Dawgs will play tonight in their season opener at 7:05 p.m.

Kiki Stokes’ First Pro Softball Game Will Be Against Husker All-America Twins

The answer? The Chicago Bandits, who just happen to have two Husker All-Americans on their roster – pitcher Tatum Edwards and twin sister catcher Taylor Edwards. Both are in their third year of professional softball, and Taylor is close to transitioning from another pro league in Japan to rejoin the Bandits. Heady stuff, to be sure, in tonight’s Ballpark at Rosemont.

Joining Chicago and Houston in the six-team pro league are the Florida Pride, Akron Racers, Dallas Charge and Pennsylvania Rebellion. The National Pro Fastpitch league is headquartered in Nashville, Tenn. An official development partner of Major League Baseball for 14 years, NPF is categorized as women’s fastpitch softball.

That’s interesting to me because one of my favorite sports movies was A League of Their Own, directed by Penny Marshall and starring Tom Hanks. The movie focused on the first female professional baseball league. It was critically acclaimed, and Nebraska is proud to follow Huskers who are developing careers on a comparable level to the movie.

Logsdon, Revelle: Stokes Exemplifies Highly Valued Nebraska Student-Athletes

We can’t end this blog without acknowledging Stokes’ recent open letter to a softball player, written after her Husker career came to a stop. FloSoftball shared the letter with fans across the country. “It was a great letter and a great reflection of Rhonda Revelle and her staff,” Nebraska administrator Pat Logsdon said.

Logsdon is the Huskers’ executive associate athletic director and Senior Women’s Administrator. She’s been a member of Nebraska Athletics since 1979. Revelle was a team member of Nebraska’s 1982 inaugural Women’s College World Series team.

Both legendary figures are fixtures in Nebraska Athletics. Both share a philosophy on how to prepare young women to succeed in academics, athletics and life, and both view Stokes as a great ambassador for Nebraska. Open letters like Kiki Stokes wrote represent Nebraska culture and give you pause to realize that there really is no place like this place.

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