Calaveras sophmore is a natural-born hitter

By Jeremy D. Malamed

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Posted: Tuesday, May 20, 2008 10:25 AM CDT

A softball bat is one of Tanna Bindi's favorite accessories. Enterprise photo by Jeremy D. Malamed

Tanna Bindi doesn’t need an amusement park to get her thrills, just a bat in her hands.

“I love hitting. I love everything about it,” said Bindi, a 15-year-old Valley Springs resident. “I love stepping in the batter’s box, waiting for the pitcher to pitch the ball...it’s just an adrenaline rush. It’s so fun.”

Bindi’s passion for hitting was reflected in her performance this spring when she helped lead the Calaveras High softball team to a second-place finish in the Mother Lode League. The big-hitting sophomore shortstop was the Redskins’ most consistent player at the plate and arguably the most feared hitter in the league.

Last week, Bindi was named the MLL’s Most Outstanding Player for the 2008 season.

A first-team all-MLL selection as a freshman, when she batted .467 with five home runs, Bindi batted .506 this season with a .787 slugging percentage. Of her 45 hits, 17 were extra-base hits, including 11 doubles and two home runs. She also led the team with 40 RBIs and scored 31 runs.

“What makes Tanna a standout is the time and energy she puts into the game to excel,” CHS coach Dominic Vasile said. “She works on her hitting several times a week and plays competitively throughout the year. Even when she feels like she had a bad practice, she would stay late to take extra grounders and get in extra swings.

“(Tanna) is a pleasure to coach because even though she plays at a high level, she is not above taking constructive criticism and is always respectful to the coaching staff and her teammates.”

Softball has always been a part of Bindi’s life. Her father Guido Bindi was a highly-regarded slowpitch softball player when Tanna was growing up, playing in many national tournaments with traveling teams from around Northern California, and her older sister Terra Fraser was a standout at Tokay High in Lodi and now plays for Division II Fort Hays State in Kansas.

Tanna started playing softball about the time she was 8 years old. She plays year round with the California Grapettes traveling team and hopes to one day earn a scholarship to play Division I college softball.

But first, she has some unfinished business with the Redskins.

After going undefeated and winning the MLL pennant in Bindi’s freshman season, Calaveras was edged by Linden in this year’s league race. Both seasons, the Redskins were eliminated in the first round of the section playoffs.

“When I leave high school, I want to leave a mark,” Bindi said. “I want to help our team get better every year and hopefully beat Linden and get past the first round of the playoffs.”

Bindi was one of seven Calaveras players honored on the all-MLL team this spring and one of four sophomores.

“The girls made this season a lot of fun,” Bindi said. “We had a lot of fun together.”

Linden battery mates Audrianna Solari and Amanda Sanders shared MLL Most Valuable Player honors. Solari, a sophomore pitcher, and Sanders, a senior catcher helped lead the Lions to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V championship round Saturday, where they were beaten by Orestimba.

Contact Jeremy D. Malamed at sports@calaverasenterprise.com

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