POTTSVILLE — Junior Aspen Campbell helped lead the Pottsville Lady Apaches to their first state championship in softball last month.
The three-sport star struck out five while allowing only two earned runs as Pottsville beat Nashville 11-3 in the Class 4A state-title game at Bogle Park in Fayetteville. For her efforts this season, Campbell is the 2017 River Valley & Ozark Edition Softball Player of the Year.
“Aspen is such a competitor,” Pottsville coach Greg Jones said. “She’s going to work and make sure that she competes in everything that she does. She does not like to lose.
“She’s a go-getter. She likes to compete, and that is the biggest plus for us.”
Campbell, who was also named to the River Valley & Ozark Edition All-Area basketball team, was named all-state in basketball as the Lady Apaches played in the state-championship game, falling to Pocahontas in overtime. She also runs track for her school.
Pottsville finished the 2017 season with a 33-4 record. Campbell was 20-1 pitching with a 0.62 earned-run average. She finished with 147 strikeouts in 123 2/3 innings pitched. She allowed only 59 hits and walked only 31 batters.
“She’s as good a shortstop as I’ve ever coached, as well as a great pitcher,” Jones said. “She can play anywhere.”
At the plate, Campbell was just as consistent. She hit .479 with 46 hits in 105 at-bats. She had 35 runs batted in with four doubles, four triples and four home runs.
“Aspen has got unbelievable hands,” Jones said. “She is so quick and fast and powerful. She struggles with slow pitching sometimes because she can’t wait back on the pitch.”
Campbell, along with her twin sister, Skyler, has been playing softball since she was 5 years old.
“Competition — I think it is important to have that in your life,” Aspen Campbell said.
Winning the state title in softball was a bit of redemption for Campbell and her teammates, as most of the starters in softball also played basketball.
“We were like, ‘We’re not going to lose,’” Campbell said. “We were at basketball and wanted to win. Not being able to finish it was difficult.”
Campbell said all the team members picked each other up and didn’t let each other get down or nervous prior to the win over Nashville.
“Going into the game, we girls who played basketball were talking to each other, trying to pick each other up,” she said. “It was a great feeling to win it.”
Campbell’s mother, Mona, said her daughters watched the video of the state championship basketball game continuously in getting ready for the state-title game in softball.
“She and her sister watched that game over and over, and they were like, ‘We’re not losing this again,’” Mona Campbell said. “They didn’t want that feeling again. They were so intent on not losing the softball game. I kept laughing at them because they kept watching that silly DVD.”
Maybe that paid off for the Lady Apaches, who jumped on top of Nashville 4-0, taking advantage of several errors by the Scrapperettes.
“It all started with trust,” Aspen Campbell said. “At the beginning of the year, we were all individuals. At the end, we knew we needed to come together and play for each other. Pitching — it was nerve-wracking, but with the defense behind me, it was a good feeling, and getting to pitch the game was amazing.
“Being able to jump on teams pretty quickly and being on the mound, for me, is a big relief.”
Following winning the championship, Campbell said, she and her teammates went to the elementary and middle schools and were treated like stars.
“We shook the kids’ hands,” she said. “They were cheering for us, and it was a great feeling.”
In addition to her softball and basketball prowess, Campbell is a standout on the track team.
Her events include the 100-meter dash, the 4x100-meter relay and the triple jump.
At the Class 4A state track meet, which was held in May at Pocahontas High School, Campbell finished seventh in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.27 seconds. She was a member of the 4x100-meter relay team, which finished fourth with a time of 52.14 seconds.
During the summer, Campbell stays busy with summer basketball workouts but also plays softball with the Oklahoma Athletics, based in Bryant.
Campbell has one more year of high school, and she said she’s thought about playing a sport at the collegiate level.
“I’ve thought about it,” she said. “I have one more year.”
At the same time, Campbell said, she and her teammates all grew up around softball.
“We have this talent that we need to show and believe in ourselves,” she said. “That is a big key for us, believing in ourselves and just trusting our teammates. Winning it for the community was a great deal.”
Staff writer Mark Buffalo can be reached at (501) 399-3676 or mbuffalo@arkansasonline.com.