Jennine Walsh, current Grade 12 at Walnut Grove Secondary and future University of Bridgeport student/athlete, didn't start out as a softball pitcher.

Her proficiency as a young girl for throwing on catcher's equipment at quicksilver speed had her initially fielding pitches, not throwing them.

"It's kind of a funny story," Walsh shared. "When I was little I could put on the catching gear the fastest, and my coach wanted me to be the catcher and his kid to be the pitcher, and I said 'I really want to pitch.'"

It didn't take long for Walsh to switch spots. She went on to take pitching lessons and through years of practice, evolved into a the pitcher she is today.

Last month, Walsh signed her letter of intent to play for the Connecticut university's NCAA Div. 2 squad. She received her papers two days before Christmas and is now looking forward to pitching for the Purple Knights in the East Coast Conference starting in the fall.

"The University of Bridgeport head softball coach has been in contact with us for some time and finalized the deal after inviting Jennine to an official visit to the school at the beginning of December," Walsh's mom AnneMarie explained.

The university's women's softball coach, Dawn Stearns, is excited to have Walsh on board.

"We are excited to have her. Jennine will be an important part of our program's future success," Stearns said.

Walsh knew playing softball was in her future.

"I knew I wanted to go away and all of that," she said.

That possibility started to take shape when she was in Grade 10 and her association started bringing the idea up.

"We had scholarship meetings, and started going away to recruitment tournaments," Walsh recalled.

Part of the White Rock Renegades 94's pitching staff, Walsh played for the Fusion 94 squad that won the Western Canadian title in 2008. She was then was picked up as a pitcher for the Victoria Devils 94, which won bronze at the Canadian nationals that year.

The best year for Walsh and the Renegades 94 was 2010, when they won the provincials and went on to earn bronze at the nationals.

Walsh has played for a number of teams at the national level, either as a pick-up or a team member.

This past summer, the Renegades 94 didn't qualify for nationals, as a younger midget team. And while her team didn't make it to the Canadian championships, Walsh jumped on the opportunity to join the Richmond Islanders 93 team that ended up second in the consolation round (eighth overall).

Last year, Walsh was selected from B.C. to attend the ISF Youth World Cup in Plant City, Fla., playing teams from the U.S., Canada, and other countries from around the world. Walsh's recent success is the product of years of practice.

Her season is almost never-ending - she and the Renegades train in gymnasiums during the winter months and she practices her form three times per week in White Rock.

Walsh doesn't mind the constant diet of softball.

"I like it - I find I get bored [when I'm not playing]," she said. "It's almost like, I can't not play."

For the past four years, Walsh has been with White Rock, because she said the association "just provided more."

"The pitching coaches. gave me an opportunity to step up my level of play," she said.

"Switching associations helped me a lot. I changed my style, I changed everything."

Looking ahead to next fall, Walsh is embracing what should be an eventful first year of university. She'll be taking first-year entry courses as a freshman before deciding on what to focus on for the following three years. Recently, she started leaning towards a career in dentistry, but that may change.

"It's a new experience so I'm excited. [The campus] is basically right on the beach, so it's pretty awesome," she said, regarding the school's plum location.

"It's an hour out of New York [Manhattan] by train ride, which is also pretty cool. The class sizes are good. It's a medium-sized school."

On the ball field, Walsh should be a big part of the Purple Knights' future.

"I'm not too nervous, because, previous years, playing in big tournaments, I don't really get nervous, anymore," Walsh said.

"And I think I'll play quite a bit. They told me that I'll be one of the top pitchers."

"They're excited to have her," Anne-Marie added. "And they're looking at her as the future of the program."

sports@langleyadvance.com