Softball
Favorite athlete: Shane Victorino
Favorite team: Philadelphia Flyers
Favorite memory competing in sports: During my sophomore year, we beat Neshaminy on our home field, and I was the winning pitcher. I will never forget it.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: My first varsity game freshman year, I was so nervous and wasn’t paying attention and got hit in the face with a throw from a teammate.
Music on iPod: Country
Future plans: Go to college/play softball at Penn State Altoona
Words to live by: “There is never an excuse for anyone to work harder than you do.”
One goal before turning 30: Help coach a softball team.
One thing people don’t know about me: I didn’t start pitching until I was a freshman.
By Mary Jane Souder
Amanda Camp is the very definition of a team player.
If that sounds cliché, it is, but the Council Rock North senior’s selfless, team-first approach is anything but cliché. As a matter of fact, it’s as rare as it is refreshing, going well beyond the ‘I’ll play anywhere you need me, coach’ line that’s associated with the team-first concept.
After compiling a 6-2 record in SOL play as a sophomore, Camp was relegated to the bench last season when a new coach and a new pitcher entered the picture.
This year, John Engelhardt was named the program’s third coach in three years, and also bursting onto the scene was freshman Jenna Khantzian,
“Amanda is coming in this year, and all you hear about is this all-world phenom freshman, and it started in tryouts,” Engelhardt said. “When you see Jenna throw – she’s pretty good.”
Camp’s reaction to her competition caught the first year coach by surprise.
“Amanda was injured a little bit, and she’s standing there on the sidelines cheering Jenna on,” Engelhardt said. “I remember going, ‘Oh my god, this girl is a senior cheering on this freshman, and they’re competing for the number one spot.’
“I’m an athlete, and I would never be able to do or have done what she did.”
So far in the young season, both pitchers have seen time in the circle, and while Camp has a passion for pitching, she is far more concerned about the bigger picture.
“I pulled her aside – I want all my players to know where they stand,” Engelhardt said. “She said, ‘Coach, look, I want to win. If that means I’m on the bench, that’s fine. Give me the ball whenever you want. I’m ready to go.’”
And Camp has been ready, earning a win in the Indians’ recent outing against Harry S Truman. Mention Khantzian to the senior captain, and it’s clear – Camp is a fan of the rookie.
“All people did was talk about her, and I heard a lot about her, but I didn’t let it affect me,” the soft-spoken Camp said. “I knew I just had to go and try my best.
“My goal is to win and get the furthest we can, and obviously, we need more than one pitcher, so I just keep that mindset. She’s a really good girl. I like her a lot, and I like sharing time with her. She’s a very good pitcher, especially for her age.
“I’ve helped her through a lot because she gets nervous. I know what it’s like to be a freshman, and we can teach each other things. We spend a lot of time together. Cheering her on is just natural.”
And that isn’t just lip service for Camp, who has committed to continue her softball career at Penn State Altoona. Several weeks ago, she was scheduled to visit the campus for a long weekend.
“Jenna wasn’t feeling well, and she was going to get the ball that Saturday,” Engelhardt said. “So Amanda said, ‘Coach, if Jenna can’t throw, text me, and I will drive back.’
“It was not even a question. It was ‘I’ll be there for team. I’ll drive back. I’ll skip the game I planned to see.’ She’s just a first class kid.”
Rock North’s game was postponed because of inclement weather, but for Camp, offering to come home came naturally.
“I get along with my teammates so well that I want the best for my team,” she said.
Her teammates, according to Engelhardt, reciprocate.
“The girls love playing for her,” the Indians’ coach said. “When she gets the ball, the girls love playing behind her.
“She’s awesome. Being a first-year coach and trying to establish a culture and what I expect as well as what’s expected of the athletes, she’s a perfect role model for exactly what I want for my program.
“We’re a young team, and the freshmen and the younger girls look up to her. She’s selfless, she just puts everyone in front of herself. She’s the first to grab a rake and rake the field. For me, it makes my job a lot easier because you have people that buy in. She bought in from day one, and she just wants to win. She shows that by her actions.”
****
Camp has been playing softball since she was six years old. She also played basketball, but softball has always been number one, although she got a late start in the circle.
“I started pitching the summer going into ninth grade,” she said. “I was playing rec, and we didn’t have a pitcher on our team, so I had to step up and start pitching.
“I really got into it and ended up being pretty good, so I went through with lessons, and that brought me to travel.”
Camp got her start with the Doylestown Mustangs but moved to the Warrington Blue Thunder where she plays for her pitching coach, Grey Heydet.
“He really helped me through it all and made me a good pitcher,” Camp said.
Heydet, the head coach at Council Rock South, calls Camp ‘a stud.’
“She’s strong, and she just works hard,” Heydet said. “She’s the best one I’ve got – she’s a competitor.
“I wish more pitchers had her work ethic. If you tell her to push herself, she pushes harder. I can’t wait for travel to start, and I’ll get her back. High school comes first.”
Camp’s high school career has followed a somewhat bumpy path. Although she started her freshman year on the jayvee, by the fifth game, Camp had earned her first varsity start. She was forced to leave the game early when she was hit in the head by a teammate’s throw.
“It was after the throw down (to second) after the infielders throw the ball around,” Camp recalled. “I was so nervous, so in my head that I didn’t pay attention for my turn to get the ball.”
Camp was diagnosed with a concussion and was sidelined the remainder of the season. That was followed by a banner sophomore season and then last year’s stint on the bench.
“It was really hard,” Camp said. “I tried not to give up and cheered on my teammates because I’m close to all of them, but it was hard. I worked really hard over the winter for this year.”
The script this season has been a much happier one, but on Tuesday, Camp’s vehicle was rear-ended on the way to school. She is sidelined with a bad case of whiplash but hopes to return to action by the weekend.
Once again, Camp has found a way to put a positive spin on her unfortunate circumstances.
“It’s been nice that I could go cheer for my teammates the past two games even though it’s hard to just watch,” she said.
Camp’s future on the diamond is secure with Penn State Altoona entering almost unexpectedly.
“I was looking at Penn State, and out of nowhere the coach kept contacting me, so I went through with it,” she said. “I visited there and I loved it.”
Camp will major in nutrition with a goal of becoming a nutritionist – possibly working in sports nutrition. For now, Camp has some important softball games to play, and the senior captain is hoping for big things from this year’s squad.
“Everyone is working so hard,” Camp said. “This is the most hard working team we’ve had since I’ve been part of the team. I’m so excited.”
Camp’s coaches have nothing but high praise their quiet leader.
“One of the mottos we have is – the wins and losses will go away, but it’s the character and integrity you bring to the game that we’ll remember forever,” Engelhardt said. “She’s the perfect person for that.”
“She’s a team player,” Heydet said. “She’s fun, she cheers on her teammates.
“She wants to win, but it’s always ‘whatever you want me to do, coach.’ When I threw, I wanted the ball. She wants the ball, but she accepts what the coach says and waits her turn. For someone to pick up (pitching) at 14 years old, you don’t hear that. She’s a stud as far as I’m concerned. She’s a great kid.”
