Softball is in Hannah Flippen’s blood. Her mom, Mary Lou, was an All-American at Utah State, winning the 1980 and 1981 national championships with the Aggies. Growing up with a softball player as good as her mom helped Flippen get to the U.
“She was my coach since I was four years old, since I started playing softball,” Flippen said. “She just pushed me to be the best athlete and the best player, and the best teammate I could be. She’s definitely a big influence on my softball career, and I’m really thankful that she helped me get to where I am today.”
In her senior year at Bonita Vista High School in Bonita, Calif., Flippen led her team to the CIF South title, and on her travel squad, Flippen won the Premier Girls Fastpitch National Championship. Flippen batted .441 over her high school career, finishing with 68 RBIs and 143 runs. In her senior season, she hit .532 at the plate.
“All those experiences were awesome,” Flippen said. “It’s so much fun to win, and all the girls on my team were so competitive — just like me — so it’s good to get those accomplishments with people that care just as much as you do about the game.”
Flippen signed with Utah Softball head coach Amy Hogue and her staff when they were coming off their last season in the Mountain West Conference, and preparing to start their foray into the Pac-12.
What made Flippen want to sign with Utah? A plethora of things.
“[Utah’s] not too far away from home. The coaching staff was unbelievable — and they still are. They treat all of us with the utmost respect and really, truly care about us,” Flippen said. “The campus is beautiful, I get to experience the snow in the winter — that’s something I’ve never experienced before. Playing at the Pac-12 level, it’s really competitive and really something that challenges me every day, and I have to get better in order to be one of the top players.”
Even top players have to start somewhere and Flippen remembers exactly where she started, with her first career hit in the first game she ever played against Boise State.
“I just hit a ground ball back right between the pitcher’s legs and I got on first base,” Flippen said. “It was just kind of like a relief, got that first hit out of the way, didn’t have to wait a long time.”
Flippen turned in a brilliant debut season, making the transition from high school softball to college softball gracefully. Flippen finished the 2014 campaign with a .382 batting average, 54 runs, 68 hits, three home runs and 33 RBIs. Flippen was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team, All-Pac-12 first team, and NFCA’s All-American second team.
“Part of it was the coaching,” Flippen said. “My high school head coach, John Carlson, he was really competitive. He played [Division-I] college, so he knew how to form athletes into college athletes. Same with my travel ball coach, Mike Stith. He’s coached a lot of good athletes and good softball players. Coming here, all my coaches kept getting us ready, kept preparing us.”
In Flippen’s freshman year, the Utes missed the tournament, but she and the rest of the Utes reached the postseason the next year. The Utes advanced all the way to the regional final in the NCAA Tournament, but fell 3-1 to Tennessee, who advanced to the women’s College World Series that season.
“[The NCAA tournament] was really exciting, it was really fun,” Flippen said. “Being able to get to that position, all our hard work paid off to get there. Playing in Tennessee and playing in front of that many people was really exciting and really fun.”
This year, Flippen is a leader on the team, making the transition from high school to college easier on the current freshmen, just like it was for her.
“I just talk to them about what they’re feeling and relate to them about what I was feeling when I was their age,” Flippen said. “I think a lot of it is mental; you have to have confidence and you have to deal with the failures. It’s not easy, but I think talking about it with the younger kids makes it easier.”
Flippen has exploded offensively this year, already tallying 10 home runs, more than her last two seasons combined. She also has 23 RBIs and 33 runs through 33 games.
“I’ve put in a lot of extra work, not just with the physical things, but with the mental things,” Flippen said. “Just the decisions I make at the plate, picking good pitches to hit as opposed to picking pitches that the other team wants me to get out on. And, I got a lot stronger in the offseason.”
The Utes, led by Flippen, are looking to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year, but Flippen won’t be satisfied with just an appearance.
“This year, we want all that hard work to pay off and get even further [than last year],” she said.
@JoeColesChrony