By Rubin E. Grant
Maggie Daniel traveled to Spain following her graduation from Spain Park in May.
She spent time in Barcelona and a few other places.
“It was a fantastic trip and so much fun,” she said.
When she got back, Daniel quickly returned to her lifelong passion – playing softball – and rejoined the Birmingham Thunderbolts, her club team.
She is consumed with the game.
“My senior trip was my break,” Daniel said. “I’ve got to put in work to continue to get better.”
Daniel, a 5-foot-8 catcher, was one of the top sluggers in the state throughout her career with the Jaguars. This spring she produced a .443 batting average with an eye-opening .613 on-base percentage and 1.584 OPS. She smacked 14 doubles and 14 home runs, giving her 47 homers for her career. She also drove in 37 runs, scored 47 and drew 42 walks.
Daniel’s brilliant season enabled Spain Park to advance to the Class 7A state tournament and finish with a 27-20 record. And it earned her the 2024 OTM Softball Player of the Year honor in balloting by Over the Mountain softball coaches.
“I’m very excited to be honored as player of the year,” Daniel said. “There are some great players who have gotten it before me, so it’s good to be in their company.”
Spain Park players have been voted OTM Softball Player of the Year each year since 2014, with the exception of 2020, when no player was chosen because the COVID-19 pandemic ended the season early.
Former Jags shortstop Katie Flannery, who just finished her freshman season at Oregon, received the honor in 2022 and 2023. Annabelle Widra, who’s now at Auburn after beginning her college career at Michigan, was a four-time recipient in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021. She shared the 2017 honor with Spain Park teammate M.K. Tedder and the 2019 honor with Jags’ teammate Maddie Majors. Tedder was the choice in 2016 and the Jags’ M.K. Bonamy was the recipient in 2014 and 2015.
Spain Park coach Allyson Ritenour believes Daniel deserves to be in such elite company.
“She’s a special player, very talented, and she works hard,” Ritenour said. “Each year she’s gotten better. She’s a great leader. She took her teammates under her wing and made sure they had high expectations and held them accountable.”
Daniel has been playing softball since she was a preschooler. She rode horses and played basketball for a while, but once she started tee-ball, she decided to focus solely on softball.
“I loved being able to compete and be part of a team,” Daniel said. “Plus, I get a nice feeling when I hit the ball on the sweet spot of the bat.”
Daniel is headed to UCLA to play in college, becoming the Bruins’ first signee from Alabama.
“The atmosphere at UCLA was great, like a family,” Daniel said. “The coaches are amazing. They made me feel wanted.”
UCLA head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez certainly was thrilled to land Daniel.
“Maggie Daniel is a clutch power hitter with high IQ behind the plate,” Inouye-Perez said when Daniel signed. “Maggie plays the game with high enthusiasm and makes everyone around her better with her passion to play. We are excited to bring her to Westwood from the state of Alabama.”
All-OTM Team
Daniel heads up the 2024 All-OTM Softball Team. She is joined by four of her Spain Park teammates: shortstop Charlee Bennett, outfielder Allie Whitaker, and pitchers Ella Ussery and Jaley Young.
Bennett, who has committed to UAB, hit .354 with a .583 OBP, seven home runs, 41 runs scored and 30 stolen bases. Whitaker belted seven homes and 11 doubles and drove in 35 runs; Ussery, who is going to North Alabama, won 11 games and struck out 145 batters in 131 1/3 innings pitched; and Young posted a 13-3 record with a 2.74 ERA.
Hoover, which reached the Class 7A state tournament, also placed five players on the team: shortstop Bella Foran, outfielders Hannah Christian and Ki Davis, third baseman Mollie Hanson, and pitchers Olivia Christian and Kaitlyn Raines.
Foran, who is headed to Florida Atlantic, hit .400 with 52 RBIs; Hannah Christian, who is headed to Southern Miss along with her sister Olivia, hit .500 with 77 hits and 41 RBIs; Davis, who is going to Alabama A&M, hit .413 with 62 hits and 29 stolen bases; Hanson had a .349 batting average; Olivia Christian posted a 21-3 record to lead the area in wins and had a 1.91 ERA and 100 strikeouts; Raines was 14-6 with a 1.38 ERA and 148 strikeouts.
Mountain Brook placed six players on the team: first baseman Emma Stearns, second baseman Claire Robinett, utility player Edith Kaplan, designated hitter Marianna Murray, and pitchers Annie Gregory and Marrison Kearse. Stearns drove in 30 runs and Robinette had a .530 OBP and 29 steals.
Oak Mountain had four players selected: outfielder Emma Hawkins, third baseman Alea Rye, catcher Anna DuBose and utility player Sheri Andrews. Hawkins, who is going to Montevallo, hit .405 with 49 hits and was 11-for-11 in stolen base attempts; Rye, who is going to Central Alabama Community College, hit .364 with 13 doubles and 37 RBIs; DuBose hit .423 and knocked in 28 runs; and Andrews hit .397 with 12 doubles, four home runs and 20 steals.
Vestavia Hills had three players voted to the team: pitcher Tait Davidson, second baseman Lucy Spisto and designated hitter E.J. Bragan. Davidson, who is going to UAB, posted a 15-8 record with a 1.32 ERA and 217 strikeouts in 122 innings pitched; Spisto, who is headed to Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, hit .374 with 31 stolen bases; and Bragan, who has committed to Union University, had a .337 OBP, with two home runs and 18 RBIs, and had a .992 fielding percentage at catcher.
Homewood had two players make the team: outfielder Madison Letson and utility player Mia Gonzalez. Letson batted .500, scored 50 runs and had 13 steals. Gonzalez hit .467 with seven doubles, seven triples, four home runs and 45 RBIs.
Rounding out the team are Briarwood Christian first baseman Meredith Kellum and John Carroll Catholic outfielder Mallory Ogle. Kellum, who is headed to Auburn University-Montgomery, hit .485 with 10 home runs. Ogle, who is headed to Lipscomb University, hit .418
Coach of the Year
Hoover’s Trey Matlock was voted coach of the year after guiding the Bucs to a 40-10-1 record and a third-place finish in the Class 7A state tournament.
“It’s an honor,” Matlock said. “It’s 100 percent a team award. It’s good to be recognized, but the girls are responsible. They went out and played together and did what we asked of them.
“It was a successful season for us. I wish we could have gotten over the hump.”
