Jennie Finch

Jennie Lynn Finch (born September 3, 1980), who occasionally uses her husband's surname, Daigle, is an American, former collegiate All-American, right-handed hitting softball pitcher and first-baseman originally from La Mirada, California. She pitched for the Arizona Wildcats, the USA national softball team and the Chicago Bandits. Finch won the 2001 Women's College World Series and helped lead Team USA to the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics and a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics.Time magazine described her as the most famous softball player in history. In 2010, Finch retired from softball to focus on her family. In August 2011, she started work as a color analyst for ESPN doing National Pro Fastpitch and college softball games. Finch is ranked in several categories for both the Wildcats in the Pac-12 and the NCAA Division I.

Early years

Finch was born in La Mirada, California. Finch has two older brothers, Shane and Landon. She began playing softball at age five and pitching at age eight. Her father was her first pitching coach. Growing up, Finch was a bat girl for the University of California, Los Angeles. At La Mirada High School, Finch lettered four times in softball and twice each in basketball and volleyball. As a senior, she was the captain of all three sports. As a sophomore, she was an All-California Interscholastic Federation Division II choice in softball and All-Suburban League selection.