Caylee English is the answer to two great trivia questions.
The first one is kind of obvious for any North Jersey softball fan. English is the first player to ever start and pitch in two Tournament of Champions finals.
She’s also the only player for Immaculate Conception to own her very own hedgehog: Bernard, or Bernie for short.
“They are just so small and cute,” giggled English, a Lodi native.
Soft and fuzzy pets aside, English is one of North Jersey’s most prominent softball players. She has three Non-Public B state championship rings and took the ball to start the Tournament of Champions final the last two years.
Neither one of those games ended in the Blue Wolves favor. Immaculate Heart Academy downed Immaculate Conception in extra innings in 2016, and Steinert shocked the Blue Wolves, 9-0, in June.
English said that both defeats were disappointing, but pitchers like her are trained to move on.
“We all have our bad days,” she said.
Growing up, English was a cheerleader for the award-winning Lodi town program. She played softball too and enjoyed both.
She hit a turning point in sixth grade when her coach Anthony Staffa suggested she pitch in a game. She told him she didn’t know what to do, but he said to just try.
“Honestly, I wasn’t a fan,” English remembered. “I liked playing in the infield, but I thought I was helping the team a lot and my coach liked me there because I could throw the ball hard and it would get over the plate, so he made me stick to it.”
She stopped cheering a year later and focused on becoming the best pitcher she could. Even though she didn’t know much about Immaculate Conception at first, she liked the small-school atmosphere and the softball program and enrolled.
As a freshman, she pitched mainly on the JV team as Sarah Piening became the first pitcher in New Jersey history to pitch and win four state titles. She also discovered volleyball and instantly made an impact for the Blue Wolves despite never playing the sport competitively before.
Immaculate Conception softball coach Jeff Horohonich handed the ball to English as a sophomore, and the right-hander delivered showing a mix of poise and intensity helping the Blue Wolves to a fifth straight Non-Public B title and the TOC final.
“Sarah brought the team so far, she was a four-time state champion and I had to continue the program being as great as it was,” said English. “I think I did a pretty good job with that.”
This season mirrored the last. The Blue Wolves rolled to a state-record sixth-straight state title in Non-Public B, but were an afterthought when the TOC rolled around and got the No. 6 seed. They went on to knock off Group 4 state champ North Hunterdon in extra innings and then rout Group 2 state champs Robbinsville, 12-2.
The less said about the final against Steinert the better, as the Blue Wolves run ended decisively.
English has been playing for the New Jersey Pride this summer. She’s been dealing with a knee injury (largely caused by volleyball) and planning to rest for the month of August until school starts up again.
That gives her more time to play with Bernie, watch him run around his wheel, make sure he’s fed and reflect on some accomplishments that are far from trivial.
In her own words
English on the lack of respect IC receives:
“For the 6th year in a row Immaculate Conception softball accomplished a State Champion victory in the Non-Public B section. We didn’t stop there; Immaculate Conception Softball made it to the TOC finals in New Jersey for the second year in a row. Despite these accomplishments, Non-Public B doesn’t always get the respect it deserves and is more often over looked for what it is, a competitive group of ball players with a drive to win. Whether it’s a low ranking or just lack of recognition, we often find ourselves as the underdogs. My team and I use this as motivation. We are always putting up a fight, playing our hardest, proving everyone wrong and pulling out big wins when they matter most. Bad games are going to happen, some seasons will be slow starters, but I am without a doubt sure IC Softball has shocked many with our accomplishments and victories. We play with heart, we play together, we went farther than anyone ever expected us to and we will continue to do so in the future.”
Story by Darren Cooper – Record Sports Department
