Palisade Junior, Elli Dorr, is the female athlete of the week brought to you by Palisade Dino Mart. Dorr plays softball in the fall and swims in the winter. Dorr has had an amazing softball season with an OBP of .429 and an average of 0.318. Inside of softball, she is usually an outfielder, but as of now, Dorr is playing shortstop. Dorr shared her background on what led her to softball. “I have been playing softball since second grade. My PE teacher got me into it. One day we were playing baseball in PE and he said ‘You should go play softball,’ and I was just like ‘I don’t know.’ My dad told me ‘It will be fine.’ I thought to myself ‘It won’t be that bad,’ and so I started from there.” Dorr has been playing since then. She is not the only family member who has played such a sport. “My dad, aunt, and cousins played,” said Dorr. Sharing a little about this season, Dorr said, “As a team, it is not the worst season we have ever had. Could it be better? Yes. Personally, it is one of my better seasons.”
Dorr expressed what she loves about softball saying, “My favorite thing about softball are the games. Just being out there and being lost in the moment you forget about everything else that is happening and you are just so into the game.” Outside of sports and school Dorr shared what she enjoys. “I like to hang out with my friends, which is all I really do. We usually end up at Los J’s. I like to get carne asada with rice.”
Being a high school athlete can be challenging when on your own. “My biggest inspiration is a softball club coach I had when I was twelve,” said Dorr. “She was a really sweet person and was so caring. I have never met anyone who doesn’t like her.” Elli’s advice that she would give to an incoming freshman athlete is: “Grades come first. Last year I always left school really early to play JV games and my grades dropped. I told myself ‘If you have a bad grade or you know you are going to have something big coming up, try and stay for it if possible.’ Put your grades first, because your coaches are never going to be mad at you for putting school first.”
Elli’s hard work and dedication she puts into her sport and grades have been paying off. We are proud to honor Elli Dorr as Athlete of the Week and are excited to see where this season takes her. Congratulations Elli Dorr.
