Wise, VA - UVa-Wise senior Lauren Snead has been a dominate force inside the circle for the Highland Cavaliers for the past four seasons. Over her career, Snead has been selected all conference, twice appeared in the national tournament, and heading into her senior season, she has been a part of 92 victories. Snead has re-written the UVa-Wise record book over her career as well. Prior to this season, Snead already held career records for strikeouts, complete games, appearances, and innings pitched. The Troutville, VA native also holds the top three single season strikeout seasons in the program's history.
Prior to coming to UVa-Wise, Snead excelled at Lord Botetourt High School. As a senior she was awarded the Blue Ridge District Pitcher of the Year Award. That same season, Snead was recognized as a first team all state selection as an infielder, she earned second team honors as a pitcher that same season. As a member of the Virginia Renegades ASA Softball team, Snead and her teammates competed at the national tournament in 2007.
As a freshman, Snead aided the Highland Cavaliers in reaching the national tournament. She recorded 15 wins that season while striking out 156 hitters. She also tossed 18 complete games that season, at the time putting her second on the single season complete game list. Snead and UVa-Wise would return to the national tournament two years later. That year UVa-Wise finished third in the AAC with a 10-6 conference record; the Cavaliers turned to Snead to carry them to a tournament championship and another national appearance.
In the 2009 Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament Snead dominated opposing batters while leading UVa-Wise to a championship. Snead went 4-0 in the tournament while posting a 0.88 earned run average. The junior struck out 35 batters in 24 innings of work; six of the strikeouts came in UVa-Wise's 10-0 win over Union in the championship game.
The tournament championship capped a year in which Snead led the AAC in wins, strikeouts, and innings pitched. Her final totals for the season stand as one of the most dominating performances in UVa-Wise history. For the season, Snead compiled a 19-8 record while posting a 1.01 era; she also struck out a school record 234 batters. The 234 strikeouts landed her atop the career strikeout list, passing April Damron early in the season to further etch her name in the record books. Later that season, Lauren struck out the 500th batter of her career making her the only Highland Cavalier to ever do so. Lauren also broke the single season complete games record in 2009. She started 28 games that season finishing all but three to set the new mark at 25.
This season Snead has continued to pile up the numbers. On April 17, Snead struck out the 700th batter of her career in a victory over Covenant. Two days later, she captured the career shutouts record with a 7-0 victory over Pikeville College. On the season, Snead leads the Appalachian Athletic Conference in strikeouts per nine innings, averaging over 11 strikeouts per nine innings. Going into the conference tournament, she is holding hitters to a .191 batting average while holding a 1.36 era.
Off the field, Snead has been a valuable asset to the UVa-Wise Campus. While a student she has been named to the Dean's List on three occasions, while also being a member of the Theta Phi Alpha Sorority. Recently she was nominated to Gamma Sigma Alpha, a national Greek organization. In May, Snead will graduate with a degree in sport management and a legacy of success on the softball field.
