Topic: Jennie Finch

Jennifer "Jennie" Lynn Finch (born September 3, 1980), or occasionally using her husband's surname, Daigle, is an American softball player who pitched for the USA softball team that won the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and she won a Silver medal for USA softball in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Although she is listed on the roster as a pitcher, Finch sometimes plays first base. She is widely regarded as the most famous softball player of all time.

Jennie Finch has been playing softball since she was five years old & has been pitching since she was eight. At La Mirada High School, Finch lettered four times in softball, & twice each in both basketball & volleyball. (As a senior, she was the captain of all three sports.) As a sophomore, she was an All-CIF Div. II choice in softball & an All-Suburban League selection, which was quite a great honor for her. Her dad, Doug Finch, was her first pitching coach. He is also the inventor of the Finch Windmill, an arm conditioning device that has been selling successfully for over 15 years.

Finch played softball for the University of Arizona. She was a three-time All-American pitcher and first-baseman and "Honda Award" winner for the Player of the Year as a member of the Wildcat softball team. Her jersey number—#27 (the date of her parents' first date)—was retired by the University of Arizona on May 9, 2003 at Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium. She recorded 24 wins in her freshman season; 29 wins in her sophomore season; 32 wins (and no losses) in her junior season to set an NCAA record; and 24 wins in her senior season, to amass a career total of 109 victories, which was the 12th most at the time. She has since been tied by Jessica Sallinger and passed by Alicia Hollowell, Monica Abbott, Cat Osterman, Angela Tincher, Keira Goerl, Brooke Mitchell, Jamie Southern, and Stacey Nelson.