| San Antonio Armadillos | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Information | |
| League | National Pro Fastpitch |
| Location | San Antonio, Texas |
| Ballpark | SAISD Spring Sports Complex |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Ownership | Suzi Stauffer |
| Manager | Phil Koehler |
The San Antonio Armadillos were a women's professional softball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They were part of the founding roster of National Pro Fastpitch teams in 2004.
The Armadillos's owner was Suzi Stauffer. [1] The Armadillos were assigned to the NPF's West Division, along with the Colorado Altitude, Arizona Heat, and California Sunbirds. The East Division included NY/NJ Juggernaut, New England Riptide, Akron Racers and Texas Thunder. [2]
The team announced in February that they had an agreement to lease San Antonio Independent School District's Spring Sports Complex for their games. [3]
Veteran softball coach Phil Koehler was named the Armadillos' coach, to be assisted by Charles Dismuke of the San Antonio Fastpitch Academy and former Texas A&M softball player Gina Perez. [4] By 2015, Koehler had more than 35 years of softball coaching, including 1989-96 as head coach of St. Edward's University [5]
In March 2004, NPF released its inaugural schedule for the year and did not include the Armadillos and the Altitude. Sources reported that NPF felt the San Antonio ownership ""came in late and really just couldn't get everything together in time," while Stauffer, calling the process a "nightmare," claimed she had a stadium and sponsors signed up, but NPF doubted her ability to support the team and increased her fee substantially, on top of a dispute over whether the league owned the team name and logos. [6]
Shortly thereafter, a letter of the team's website indicated that the Armadillos, with new owners, would apply to be an NPF expansion team in 2005. [7] However, the only 2005 expansion team was the Chicago Bandits, and after the Texas Thunder moved to Rockford, Illinois, the NPF would not have a team in Texas until the Dallas Charge began play in 2015.
The Armadillos participated in NPF's inaugural Elite Draft and Senior Draft. The following players were drafted by the Armadillos: [8]
| Player | Position | College | Draft Position | NPF Experience [9] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stacey Phillips | 1B | Michigan State | Elite Draft: Round 1, pick 1 - Signed | Never played in NPF |
| Kathy Morton | OF | Southwestern Louisiana | Elite Draft: Round 1, pick 7 - Signed | Never played in NPF |
| Lea Mishlan | SS | South Florida | Elite Draft: Round 2, Pick 9 | Never played in NPF |
| Stormy Hanson | C | Indiana | Elite Draft: Round 3, Pick 17 | Never played in NPF |
| Jessica Wheeler | SS | San Jacinto College | Elite Draft: Round 4, Pick 25 | Never played in NPF |
| Carri Leto | IF | Northwestern | Senior Draft: Round 2, Pick 16 | NY/NJ Juggernaut (2004–05), Philadelphia Force (2006), New England Riptide (2007–08) |
| Tara Knudsen | SS | Georgia Tech | Senior Draft: Round 3, Pick 24 | Arizona Heat (2005) |
| LaDonia Hughes | OF | LSU | Senior Draft: Round 4, Pick 32 | Arizona Heat (2005–06), Washington Glory (2007–08), USSSA Pride (2009) |
| Anissa Meashintubby | P | Oregon | Senior Draft: Round 5, Pick 40 | Never played in NPF |
| Meghan Clark | 1B | Mercer | Senior Draft: Round 6, Pick 48 | Never played in NPF |
The following players also appeared on the team's roster, acquired via means other the draft (free agency, trade): [10]
| Player | Position | College | NPF Experience [9] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robyn King | 2B | Boston University | Never played in NPF |
| Tobin Echo-Hawk | 3B | Nebraska | Orlando Wahoos (1997–98), Akron Racers (1999-00, 2005) |
| Becky Manson | UT | Central Michigan | Never played in NPF |
| Alicia Smith | OF | Hofstra | NY/NJ Juggernaut (2005) |
| Monica Triner | P | South Florida | Tampa Bay FireStix (1999-00), Arizona Heat (2004) |
| Tarrah Beyster | P | Oregon State University | NPF All-Stars (2003), Arizona Heat (2004), New England Riptide (2006–07) |
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