By the time freshman first baseman Carlie Scupin stepped to the plate in the seventh inning Friday, the breeze was blowing out to centerfield.
Tucson High’s softball team led Salpointe Catholic 5-2 and the Lancers’ outfielders stepped back to the warning track, playing Scupin as deep as possible.
Even though she’s only a freshman, Scupin’s reputation is known everywhere in Tucson softball, and not just because she accepted a scholarship to play for Arizona’s Mike Candrea when she was 14.
Scupin hit a towering shot that cleared the Nancy Roy Softball Complex sign behind the centerfield fence. It took one bounce onto Glenn Street. The Badgers won 7-2, extending their winning streak to 15 games, moving into state championship contention at 21-3 overall.
Scupin is hitting .583 with eight homers and 31 RBI in her varsity debut, and coach Danielle Rodriguez’s Badgers appear to be a threat to 25-0 Cibola and 25-1 Pinnacle in the Class 6A race. Scupin isn’t doing it alone; senior pitcher Mia Trejo is hitting .466 with an 8-2 pitching record, and her sophomore sister, Alyssa, is hitting .522.
Two weeks ago, Scupin hit for the cycle in a victory over defending state champion Ironwood Ridge, driving in eight runs. The left-hitting first baseman is probably Tucson’s most highly-ranked softball prospect since CDO’s Kenzie Fowler in 2006.
