July 25, 2007
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Notre Dame head softball coach Deanna Gumpf recently announced that Alexia Clay (Rochester, Ind.) has been added to the Irish roster for the 2008 campaign after spending the 2007 season at the University of Tennessee.
“Alexia joining the team is a huge addition to the program,” said Gumpf. “And as a local product returning to the area, having her playing here will be great for the community as well.
“She brings a knack of winning to the program and I know the team will feed off of that.”
Clay batted .297 as a freshman for the Lady Vols and earned starting nods in 33 of 59 games in 2007, including seven starts in the NCAA Tournament and all three of UT’s contests in the Women’s College World Series. Nine of her 35 hits were good for extra bases to drive in 22 runs, and she paired a .441 slugging percentage with a .359 on-base mark. She put together a season-best six-game hitting streak from Feb. 24-March 6 in addition to posting six multi-hit games and five multi-RBI efforts.
A native of Rochester, Ind., Clay prepped at Culver Girls Academy where she was a 2006 Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-North Region selection, Gatorade’s Indiana Player of the Year, and the Hoosier Diamond Indiana Miss Softball. Clay still holds state records for career home runs (43) and grand slams (5).
She also set the state record for single-season homers with 15 in 2006 and broke Indiana’s single-season walk record by drawing 44 free passes during her junior year. The rising sophomore holds the Indiana state mark for put-outs by a catcher with 1,305.
In 2006 she was named MVP of the Indiana all-star game to cap off a high school career in which she carried a .529 clip at the plate and had 152 RBI. She reaped all-state honors on four occasions, with first-team nods in 2005 and 2006 and a pair of third-team selections in 2003 and 2004, while helping her team to a four-year mark of 95-13.
During her senior season she finished second among batters statewide with a .611 average at the dish. Clay also recorded a .633 on-base percentage, 1.346 slugging percentage, 25 stolen bases, 40 runs scored, 43 RBI, 12 doubles and a pair of triples. Defensively, the 5-foot-6 catcher posted a fielding percentage of .995.
As a junior, Clay hit a solid .551 with 11 dingers, 38 RBI and a slugging percentage of 1.231, while 27 of her 43 hits during the year went for extra bases.
Clay also made her presence felt between the posts as a first-team all-conference soccer player after guiding Culver to a conference title and a 13-2-2 mark in 2005.
— ND —