By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
GREEN BAY – Ashley Wolfe, a Green Bay Preble High School sophomore, recently helped her 14U fastpitch softball team, Iowa Premier, win the United States Specialty Sports Association National Championship.
The tournament was held in Kansas City, Missouri.
“Once we won in the semifinals, our team felt we were going to win it all,” said Wolfe. “It was the last 14U tournament for most of the girls on the team, so we went out with a big bang. It was the best feeling ever.”
Iowa Premier, based in Des Moines, is one of the best club teams in the Midwest and a top-20 program nationally.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Wolfe’s freshman season at Preble was canceled this past spring, but many club teams around the country played all summer.
“It was a great season,” Wolfe said. “With COVID-19, we had several tournaments canceled, so the team went where it could and wanted to get on the field. We kept working hard and didn’t let the virus get to us. We were safe about the whole thing and nobody got sick.”
Iowa Premier also played in tournaments in Oklahoma and Kansas.
With her solid play during the summer, Wolfe moved up individually in the Extra Innings Softball national rankings for 2023 high school graduates.
“I was ranked 98th nationally last season, but I moved up one spot,” she said. “It’s hard to move up because all the players are good, but my goal is to get better than one player every year. I’d like to move up as far as I can and keep improving my skills. You don’t want to lose that spot.”
Wolfe, a shortstop, is also ranked as the 66th-best middle infielder.
Wolfe turned 15 this past May and said her ultimate goal is to help her Preble team win and land a Division I college scholarship.
“I’m an open book on where I’ll go,” she said. “I still have lots of options, but I’d like to become a physical therapist.”