No. 30 Hot 100 2020 pitcher Ryleigh White of Beverly Bandits Harms/Harkness rode the wave of star status and struggle over the last year. She wrote to FloSoftball about her exclusive experience dealing with injury, taking unofficial trips, and making her verbal commitment to Tennessee.



Coach Anthony LaRezza initially spoke with Coach Ralph Weekly about me back in the winter of 2015 right before you had done the first Flosoftball article on me. Coach LaRezza loved and respected Coach Ralph and thought I would love the campus and thought I should check it out. He had known the Weekly's for a long time.

I went out to one of Tennessee summer camps in early July 2015. During the camp, I met Coach Ralph and Coach Marty the pitching coach. I had fun at the camp. I went back to the campus again in September for a prospect camp. That was when we talked on the phone while my dad and I were driving to the camp in the car.

At that camp I got to see the campus, went to a football game, got a tour of all what Tennessee had to offer. My dad and I sat and spoke with Coach Ralph and Karen and they told me that they really liked me and would love for me to be a Vol but thought I should still check out as many schools as I could before deciding because it was an important decision. They weren't going to put any pressure on me at all.

I left Tennessee thinking that I wanted to play for the Weeklys but still wasn't in any rush to make any decisions yet. I wanted to see some other schools. Over the next year, I visited many of the top 10 softball college programs in the country and spoke with many good coaches and players. I still wasn't in any rush to decide because I was only 13. I was having fun going to all these different schools. All I knew was that I wanted to play in the SEC for a big program.

Since my first visit to Tennessee, I would occasionally call and speak with Coach Ralph on the phone after playing or just to see if he was going to be where I was playing. He would always answer the phone and I always enjoyed talking with him. My mom said I was always smiling when I was on the phone with him too.

In January this year I strained my back at Banditfest in Chicago. I took some time off and then tried pitching through it but it wasn't getting better so my parents shut me down completely to rest. I struggled mentally on the mound over the next six months. Coach Ralph always knew the right thing things to say. He would tell me about Monica Abbott and her struggles when she was younger and to not worry about anything and just focus on getting better that everyone knows what you can do on the softball field.

It took a while and a lot of training and strengthening my core and with the help of my strength coach Brandon Cruz I'm 100 percent again. Now I just have to get my MOJO back having not thrown consistently for 6-8 months!

After PGF, I still wasn't myself yet and was feeling frustrated. I spoke with Coach Ralph and he said, "No worries Rye. We have faith in you and told me to come back down for another camp in September. Enjoy another football game."

We took the 10 hour car ride to Knoxville. We got there late Friday night and went right to bed. Saturday morning we headed to the softball club house for the football tailgate and the Vol walk thru the campus. As soon as we passed the University of Tennessee sign on the way to the softball field I got goosebumps. My mom turned to me and said, "Rye I just got goosebumps and felt excited to be here."

I said that's weird I did too.

Driving into the parking lot I just felt relaxed, like I was home. I hadn't felt that yet at any camp or college until now and I got a little scared. I was thinking. Is this it? Is this what everyone talks about when they just know? I had always enjoyed my visits to Tennessee but this one felt different.

My family and I enjoyed the football game, it was very exciting. The Vols came back in their football game against Florida from being down 21-3 and won 38-28. I again got goosebumps sitting in the stands with over a hundred thousand screaming students and fans. I was grinning ear to ear.

On the walk back from the stadium to the car, I talked with my parents and I told them that it felt right being here. They told me to enjoy the ride that I was very lucky because only a small percentage of kids get to experience something like this and that they support me no matter what.

Once we got back to the clubhouse, we were waiting for traffic to die down and Coach Ralph asked if we wanted to sit and talk with him and Coach Karen to catch up on things. We went into the conference room and Coach Ralph asked how our other visits have gone and where did Tennessee rank among the schools I visited.

I paused for a second or two and felt my eyes tearing up. I started thinking about all the hard work, the time and effort all my coaches have spent with me. I thought about my pitching Coach Frank Pelicani who just knows how to motivate and push me. I thought about my hitting and life coach Phil Delgado who always knows what to say and never sugar coats it. I thought back to all the times my parents got up every Saturday and Sunday at 4:00 AM eight months out of the year to drive me to tournaments. They spent tons of money on travel and hotel rooms all over the country and supported me during the really good and really bad games!

So with a calm mind and voice I said, "Well, Coach Ralph you have seen me at my worst and you have seen me at my best and you have never wavered in your support or faith in me. Coach Anthony respected you and always said you and Coach Karen and Tennessee would be a perfect fit for me. So I've decided that I want to be a VOL!"

There was a silent pause...then Coach Ralph said, "Wait…WHAT?"

And I said, "This is where I wanna play softball and earn a college degree."

He stood up and gave me a big hug and said, "Lets hug this out!"

My mom was crying and I'm pretty sure my dad had a tear in his eye but he would never admit that. We sat back down and talked a little more about Coach LaRezza. Coach Ralph told us he nominated him for the Hall of Fame and never realized how great of a coach he really was and that he knew him for nine years and had always trusted his opinion on players. He told us when he first spoke to him about me he was very excited and said, "She will win you a championship I promise you. She's raw and needs fine tuning but she has all the tools and is just starting to realize her potential."

We left the clubhouse and I felt calm, happy, and a little nervous.

Now that I've made this decision, I have to train even harder now to prepare for what's to come. I know I have a target on my back but my dad always says, "If you have haters it means your doing something right!" There is a lot of pressure being a softball pitcher in that circle with every game I pitch and I know pressure is a privilege. Pitching is something I want to do--it's not something I have to do.

My parents have given me everything I need to succeed not only in school and softball but in life. I appreciate everything they have done for me and It's up to me now to use these gifts God gave me and make them, Coach LaRezza and Tennessee softball proud. I am going to embrace the journey.

GO LADY VOLS!

Ryleigh White