If my memory serves correctly, she wasn't always in the starting lineup, despite her leadoff speed and batting average. Is my recollection correct, and if so... what was the reason?

difficult it is to do. Watched my daughter go through the change from right handed hitter with speed and power to lefty slapper in one year. Also saw her get her only Over the fence HR as a lefty. She had several ISP HR's but... It was an interesting ride but slapping is a lot more difficult than people give it credit for.

change with the help of one assistant coach who helped her out 4 days a week at the field we worked at home after work at the field and on off days. Unfortunately she was put behind by travel ball coaches that would not let her make the change that summer. Travel has her hit righty while she was working out lefty. It was a difficult summer and fall, but when she got to school ball in the spring she fully made the shift to lefty slapper. Her ability to do both that summer still amazes me. Then in her senior year she had a coach who gave her the option to switch hit. She took the option and for about 5 games she got no hits and then made the decision on her own to go back lefty slapper full time and ended up hitting a little over .400. In short, she made the change because school coaches asked her to and she agreed. She was good and could have played DIII or DII but she knew that she didn't need softball to go to school. Went to VT and graduated in 4 years with a double major and Double minor. Then went on to get her Masters. Softball was fun and she enjoyed being with her friends more than she enjoyed some of the situations she was asked to be in. We still talk about some of her escapades as a softball player and some of the athletically freaky things she did. Good memories and bad. Once saw her in a rundown between 1st and 2nd and after about 15 times back and forth the other team over threw the ball and she advanced to 3rd and dumb coach tried to send her home (she was exhausted) and fell between 3rd and home and got tagged out. That was in a 16U travel ball tournament.

I would think hitting for speed and power would have more helpful to the team. More later

Great pitchers have a tendency to 'own' slappers, pitching to a slapper's weakness which is down and away in the strike zone. Best to be a 'hybrid' slapper like All American's Kendra Falby, Rhea Taylor, Taylor Gadbois etc. Cam ***an was also in this category. They had very good size and could keep pitchers 'honest', hitting to all fields. Slapping was just part of their hitting repertoire. Seems like now there are fewer and fewer 'true slappers' and teams have adapted to applying infield shifts in an attempt to neutralize them. Hokies cheered for Brownie to 'steal' first base, then steal second. She did that a lot.

She had a little bit of a bump in the road her junior year, hitting "only" .289. She started 34 of 52 games that year. Cam ***an batted leadoff much of that season.

With a ultra high slugging percentage, probably took some innings away from Brownie. But Brownie still got plenty of quality playing time.