LOCAL COLLEGES: Aztecs' lore may long remember Floros

By TOM SHANAHAN - For the North County Times | Sunday, March 23, 2008 11:30 PM PDT ∞

SAN DIEGO ---- On San Diego State softball's senior day next year, the public address announcer might have a script placed in front him that introduces Erin Floros this way: "A senior, from Mt. Carmel High School, the greatest player in San Diego State softball history, Erin Floros!"

It could be true. The junior catcher/infielder began establishing that kind of career almost from the first day she stepped on campus as SDSU head coach Kathy Van Wyck's most acclaimed recruit.

First, the Aztecs beat national powers Oklahoma and Washington for Floros' commitment. Then Floros lived up to her hype as a true freshman in 2006, becoming the first softball All-American in school history.

"She very well could be ---- absolutely," Van Wyck said of Floros' potential to be remembered as the best player in school history. "She was a recognized player coming out of high school, so people knew who she was. Then she put up big numbers. Now she's on pace to break our RBI record."

But before Floros trots onto the field to such recognition, someone needs to pull her aside and fill her in on all that she has accomplished. Otherwise, she might wonder who the PA person is introducing.

"I never look at my stats or those kinds of things," the soft-spoken Floros said. "I remember I was surprised when someone was telling me what I was hitting my freshman year. I knew I was seeing the ball well, but I really didn't t know my average."

For the record, Floros batted .388 (57-for-147) as a freshman to lead the Aztecs to the NCAA tournament, where they lost to UCLA in a regional final. She also was freshman of the year in the Mountain West Conference and first-team all-conference.

She started 48 of 49 games, scored 30 runs and finished with 13 doubles, four home runs and 22 RBIs. Her on-base percentage was .467, and her slugging percentage was .558.

But when Floros was named San Diego State's first All-American, she didn't learn about the honor until her father, Joel, called her at school.

"That really happened," Floros said, laughing more out of modesty than embarrassment. "I'm not the kind of person that thinks about those things. I don't like showy athletes. Maybe I don't like attention."

She got more attention than she wanted as a sophomore. Teams were pitching her differently as an All-American batting cleanup for the Aztecs.

But just as she began to find her stroke midway through the season, she tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee in a freak accident. She made a quick move back to first base when the ACL popped and she crumpled to the dirt.

"You don't want to know what I was thinking," Van Wyck said of watching Floros fall.

But Floros is back as a junior, picking up where she left off as a freshman for the Aztecs, who are 27-10 this season and ranked No. 22 in the nation by ESPN/USA Softball and No. 25 in the USA Today/National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll.

She has 27 RBIs through 37 games, leaving her within range of the school's season record of 41 by Kelcy Murphy in 2002. The Aztecs have 20 regular-season games, the Mountain West tournament and possible NCAA contests remaining.

SDSU is coming off four games in the Judy Garman Classic at Fullerton last week, in which the Aztecs went 3-1 against three nationally ranked schools. The Aztecs beat Washington (No. 19 ESPN, No. 18 USA Today) 9-5 in 12 innings; lost to Michigan (No. 6 in both polls) 2-0; beat DePaul (No. 18 ESPN, No. 14 USA Today) 1-0, and defeated Illinois 2-0.

Although Floros' batting average dropped from .316 to .280 in the four games, Van Wyck says her mere presence in the middle of the batting order has helped the team. The Aztecs noticed in 2007 when Floros wasn't there.

"We've never been a big hitting team, and she's been a huge part of that for us," Van Wyck said. "I'm so happy with the way she has come back this year."

Floros said one reason she's playing like she did in her freshman year is she's thinking like she did then. What she means is that all the honors and attention that came her way distracted her as a sophomore.

"This year I'm just happy to be playing again," she said. "I want to build on my freshman year. I don't even want to think about my sophomore year."

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