Danielle Lawrie facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Danielle Lawrie
Pitcher
Born: (1987-04-11) April 11, 1987 (age 38) Burnaby, British Columbia
Bats: Right Throws: Right
debut
July 30, 2010, for the USSSA Pride
NPF statistics
Win–loss record	25–11
Earned run average	2.53
Strikeouts	288
Shutouts	9
Complete games	24
Innings pitched	293.2
Teams
Washington Huskies (2006–2010) USSSA Pride (2010–2014) Canadian Wild (2019-present)
Career highlights and awards
NPF All-Star (2011) 2× USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year (2009, 2010) Women's College World Series champion (2009) WCWS All-tournament team (2009) WCWS Most Outstanding Player (2009) 2× Honda Sports Award winner for softball 2× Cowles Cup champion (2013, 2014)
Medals Women's softball Representing  Canada Olympic Games Bronze 2020 Tokyo Team Pan American Games Silver 2007 Rio de Janeiro Silver 2019 Lima World Championships Bronze 2010 Caracas Bronze 2018 Chiba

Danielle Elaine Lawrie (born April 11, 1987) is a Canadian softball pitcher who has achieved great success. She was an All-American in college, an Olympian who won a medal, and a professional All-Star. Today, she is also a sports commentator.

Danielle played college softball for the Washington Huskies. She helped her team win the 2009 Women's College World Series championship. She was even named the Most Outstanding Player of that tournament. Danielle has also played for the Canada women's national softball team. She represented Canada in the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2020 Summer Olympics, where she proudly won a bronze medal.

From 2010 to 2014, and again in 2019, Lawrie played professionally for the USSSA Pride and Canadian Wild. These teams are part of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF). She was an NPF All-Star in 2011. She also helped her teams win two Cowles Cup championships in 2013 and 2014. Danielle holds many records for the Huskies and the Pac-12. She is the all-time leader in strikeouts in the Pac-12. She also ranks fourth all-time in the NCAA Division I for strikeouts.

Early Life and School

Danielle grew up in Langley, British Columbia, Canada, where she still lives today. Her parents are Cheryl and Russ Lawrie.

Her younger brother, Brett Lawrie, also became a professional athlete. He played baseball in Major League Baseball for teams like the Toronto Blue Jays. Brett started playing for the Canadian national junior team when he was just 15. He also played for Team Canada in the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Danielle went to Brookswood Secondary School. There, she was a star in softball. She helped her team win three league championships. She was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in her first and last years of high school. She was also a first-team All-Star for four years and team captain three times. Besides softball, Danielle also played basketball. In the summers, she played for the White Rock Renegades for five years. She was named the MVP of the 2005 Canadian National Team. After high school, she became the first Canadian player on the University of Washington softball team.

College Career at Washington

Danielle Lawrie started her college career strong. In 2006, she was named to the Pac-10 Second Team. She quickly broke the Husky season record for strikeouts. On February 10, she won her first game against the Oklahoma Sooners. She struck out 7 batters. Later, on February 26, she pitched her first perfect game against the Utah Valley Wolverines. A perfect game means no opposing player reaches base.

Danielle often had amazing pitching duels. On March 16, she and Cat Osterman combined for 32 strikeouts in one game. This is one of the top NCAA records. In another long 11-inning game, she and Caitlin Noble combined with Katie Burkhart for 42 strikeouts. This set another NCAA record for combined strikeouts. On April 26, Danielle struck out 19 batters from the No. 1 UCLA Bruins. This was her first win against a top-ranked team.

As a sophomore, Danielle was named a National Fastpitch Coaches Association First Team All-American. She also made the Pac-10 First Team. She broke her own records for strikeouts and strikeout ratio. She also threw a no-hitter, which means no opposing player gets a hit. On February 18, she struck out a school-record 20 batters in 7 innings against the South Florida Bulls. This tied her for the second-highest total in an NCAA regulation game. The Huskies made it to the Women's College World Series. Danielle pitched a no-hitter there against the DePaul Blue Demons on May 31.

In her junior year, Danielle received many awards. She was named Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year and USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year. She also won the Honda Sports Award for softball. She set school records for wins, strikeouts, and innings pitched. She led the NCAA in many of these categories. She also had a low ERA (Earned Run Average) and threw two more no-hitters.

Danielle had an amazing streak of 64.1 consecutive scoreless innings in 2009. This means no runs were scored against her for a long time. During this streak, she won 11 games and struck out 112 batters. On March 7, she got her 1,000th career strikeout. In the NCAA tournament, Danielle had a career-best 24 strikeouts in a 15-inning game. This was a top-10 NCAA record for a single game. At the World Series, Danielle led the Huskies to victory. They beat the No. 1 seeded Florida Gators. In the final game, she struck out 8 batters and drove in the winning run. She was named MVP and made the All-Tournament team.

In her final season (2010), Danielle again earned First Team honors from the NFCA and Pac-10. She also won her second Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year award. She became the first player since Cat Osterman to win multiple USA and Honda Sports Awards. Danielle led the NCAA in shutouts and broke her own record. She also led the team in home runs and RBIs (Runs Batted In). She pitched four more no-hitters, including three perfect games. This tied an NCAA record for perfect games in a season.

Danielle started the 2010 season with 18 straight wins. Combined with wins from 2009, she had a 21-game winning streak. She also pitched 14 consecutive perfect innings. This included a perfect game against the Miami RedHawks. On May 15, she had career highs in hits (3) and RBIs (5) in one game. The Huskies made it back to the National title defense but were eventually eliminated.

Danielle holds many records at the University of Washington. These include career wins, shutouts, and strikeouts. She also holds the Pac-12 record for most Player of the Week awards. In the NCAA, she ranks 4th in career strikeouts and 6th in wins.

Danielle did not play for the Huskies in 2008. Instead, she was representing the Canadian National Team at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.

Playing for Team Canada

Danielle Lawrie was one of 15 players chosen to play for Canada in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. She pitched 12 innings in three games. In her first Olympic game, she helped Canada win 9–2 against the Netherlands. She struck out four batters. She also pitched a complete game against Venezuela, striking out nine.

Before the 2008 Olympics, Danielle was part of the Canadian National Team from 2005 to 2008. She helped the team qualify for the 2008 Olympics at the 2006 World Cup. In October 2007, at the China Cup in Beijing, Canada won all three games Danielle started. They earned a Silver Medal. Danielle had a 3–0 record and a 1.29 ERA in that tournament. She also led the team with 21⅔ innings pitched and 18 strikeouts. She pitched a great game against Australia, giving up only two hits in seven shutout innings.

Danielle came out of retirement to train for the 2020 Summer Olympics. She helped Canada qualify by finishing as runner-up at the 2019 Americas Qualifier. She secured their spot with a shutout win over Brazil. At the Tokyo Olympics, she had a 1-1 record. She earned the win in the Bronze medal game, helping Canada defeat Team Mexico 3-2 on July 27, 2021.

Professional Career: National Pro Fastpitch

In 2010, Danielle Lawrie joined professional softball in the NPF league. She became a pitcher for the USSSA Pride. She wore number 15, just like she did for the Washington Huskies. Danielle pitched her first game for the Pride on July 30, 2010.

In 2011, Danielle was named an All-Star for the Pride. She won 8 games in a row, which was a career best. During this streak, she had a low 1.34 ERA. She also had a streak of 27.1 consecutive scoreless innings. To start the 2012 season, she struck out a career-high 13 batters in a win against the Chicago Bandits. Danielle won two Cowles Cup Championships with the Pride in 2010 and 2014. In 2019, she joined the Canadian Wild. Danielle ranks among the top 10 all-time in career strikeout ratio in the NPF.

Career Statistics

Here are some of Danielle Lawrie's career statistics from her time in college and professional leagues.

Professional Stats: NPF USSSA Pride & Canadian Wild