Mississippi Valley State assistant softball coach Trena Peel will spend her summer playing professional fast-pitch softball as a member of the Philadelphia Force of the National Pro Fastpitch League.
Peel, whose on-field responsibilities and additional off-the-field duties were important to the Devilettes capturing their sixth consecutive SWAC softball title, will join her team tonight as they take on the defending NPF Champion Chicago Bandits in Chicago.
A native of Aurora, Colorado and a 2003 graduate of LSU with a bachelor of science in kinesiology, she has enjoyed a professional career that has included stints with the Akron Racers (2004), New York Juggernauts (2005), Chicago Bandits (2006) and Philadelphia Force (2007).
In her rookie season with Akron, she finished with five homeruns, three triples, 27 RBI and a league-high 27 stolen bases. The two-time NPF All-Star (2004, 2005) was especially productive in two seasons with Philadelphia. In 2007, she signed as a free agent and ended the campaign leading the team with five home runs and tied for second on the team with 20 runs scored. In 2008, she had eight home runs (tied for fifth in the league) along with eight stolen bases, 20 RBI and a .508 slugging percentage.
In a new twist for the league, the NPF and Major League Baseball have partnered to stream a schedule of 60 NPF games live online exclusively from the League’s official Web site at www.ProFastPitch.com. The live streaming begins with tonight’s contest between the Bandits and the Force.
National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL).