University of Tennessee Athletics
2006 Softball Roster | College World Series
Roster
Fekete, Sarah
2B/SS
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Jersey Number 3
Sarah Fekete
- Height:
- 5-8
- Class:
- Senior
- Hometown:
- Maryville, Tenn.
- High School:
- Maryville
Bio
Over the course of her four seasons in Knoxville, Fekete played in 280 games and amassed a staggering 296 hits, 189 runs, 85 stolen bases and 55 sacrifice hits. Her .398 career batting average and .456 career on-base percentage rank third and eighth in UT history, respectively. On April 16, 2022, Fekete became only the second player in Tennessee softball history to have her jersey retired (No. 3), joining her former teammate, Monica Abbott, as the only Lady Vols to receive the prestigious recognition.
Fekete's coach, Karen Weekly: "Sarah Fekete is one of the great stories in the history of Tennessee athletics. She arrived in the fall of 2002 determined to prove she could compete at the highest level of college softball. She did that, and so much more. She began her freshman year as a right-handed hitter and finished her senior year as a left-handed slapper and the best hitter in the nation. People have no idea the level of trust that required and the hours of work she put in to make that transformation. She is one of the most competitive young women Ralph and I have ever coached. Sarah showed up to every practice and game with one goal — to give her all for Tennessee."
Fekete's coach, Karen Weekly: "Sarah Fekete is one of the great stories in the history of Tennessee athletics. She arrived in the fall of 2002 determined to prove she could compete at the highest level of college softball. She did that, and so much more. She began her freshman year as a right-handed hitter and finished her senior year as a left-handed slapper and the best hitter in the nation. People have no idea the level of trust that required and the hours of work she put in to make that transformation. She is one of the most competitive young women Ralph and I have ever coached. Sarah showed up to every practice and game with one goal — to give her all for Tennessee."
HONORS
- USA Softball World University Games Team (gold medal, Taiwan)
- 2006 NCAA Division I Batting Champion (.500)
- 2006 Honda Award Finalist
- 2006 USA Softball Player of the Year Top-10 Finalist
- 2006 Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-American First Team
- 2006 Lady Vol/AOpi Athlete of the Year
- 2006 UT Daily Beacon Female Athlete of the Year
- 2006 Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-South Region First Team
- 2006 All-SEC First Team
- 2006 SEC Tournament All-Tournament Team
- 2006 SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll
- SEC Player of the Week (March 6, 2006)
- 2005 Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-American First Team
- 2005 Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-South Region First Team
- 2005 All-SEC First Team
- 2005 SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll
- 2005 Georgia Southern Invitational All-Tournament Team
- SEC Player of the Week (March 21, 2005)
- 2004 SEC Tournament All-Tournament Team
- 2004 Lady Vol Classic All-Tournament Team
- 2003 SEC Tournament All-Tournament Team
2006 - SENIOR
- Selected by the Philadelphia Force with the 10th overall pick in the 2006 National Pro Fastpitch Draft.
- Provided outstanding contributions to the Lady Vols’ first SEC Tournament Championship in program history and WCWS third-place finish.
- Led the nation in hits (110) and batting average (.500), which ranked ninth and 25th in NCAA history, respectively.
- Set the Lady Vol single-season records in batting average (.500) and hits (110).
- Finished with 12 games where she batted a perfect 1.000 at the plate.
- Scored a run in 33 games, including 11 outings with multiple runs scored.
- Earned first team All-SEC honors and was an All-America selection for the second consecutive year.
- Notched a .529 batting average (9-of-17 at the plate) with eight RBIs and seven runs scored at the Louisville Slugger Classic.
- Went 4-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored against Hawaii.
- Batted 3-for-4 with two runs scored in a 10-4 victory over Coastal Carolina.
- Led the Lady Vols with 12 runs scored, three doubles and five RBIs at the USF Adidas Tournament.
- Posted a team-best .455 average (5-of-11) with three runs scored and two RBIs in UT’s three-game sweep of Arkansas.
2005 - JUNIOR
- Chosen as a Louisville Slugger/NFCA First-Team All-America and All-South Region choice.
- Led the Lady Vols in hitting with a .414 average, the third-best single-season total in UT history.
- Selected as a first-team All-SEC choice after leading the conference in hitting.
- Also racked up 30 stolen bases and a UT best 20 sacrifice hits.
- Now leads Tennessee in career thefts with 63 and is 10th in on-base percentage at .414.
- Singled against No. 3 Arizona (6/2) and No. 7 UCLA (6/3) in the 2005 Women’s College World Series.
- Contributed a 1-of-2, one-RBI performance in the NCAA Super Regional-clinching 6-0 win over No. 4 Stanford (5/28).
- Went 3-for-3 in UT’s 3-0 win over Mississippi State (5/14) in the SEC Tournament.
- Hit .455 (5-of-11) in a three-game series at Ole Miss.
- Returned to action against Austin Peay on April 19.
- Suffered a broken jaw in the seventh inning of the win over Virginia (3/24) and was out of action for approximately four weeks.
- Stole two bases against Virginia to help the team break the school record of 83.
- Went 3-of-3 with two runs scored in the 8-1 win over Liberty (3/22).
- Hit .615 over five games from South Carolina to Mississippi State to pick up the SEC’s Player of the Week honor.
- Went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in the 9-1, series-opening win over South Carolina.
- Had a tough weekend overall in Palm Springs by going 1-of-8 at the plate with an RBI and taking a foul ball in the forehead against No. 1 California (2/26).
- Got a hit in the 14-0 rout of Pacific (2/25) to set the new Lady Vol record for combined hitting streak at 24 games.
- Batted at a .615 clip in the title run at the GSU Invitational in Statesboro, Ga. Perfect 3-for-3 at the plate (two runs scored, RBI) in the GSU championship game win over Illinois-Chicago (2/20).
- With a 1-for-3 day in the 12-0 win over Mercer (2/19), Fekete broke Kristi Durant’s 20-game UT hitting streak record.
- Continued her torrid start to 2005 by hitting .500 with a double at the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic in Las Vegas, Nev. (Feb 11-13).
- Contributed two hits in wins over No. 22 Nebraska (4-0) and No. 8 Washington (2-1).
- Led the way offensively from the second spot in the batting order at the Clearwater Invitational by hitting at a team-best .588 clip with a slugging percentage of .824 and an on-base % of .611.
- Reached base safely in nine consecutive at-bats stretching over the DePaul, Gardner-Webb and Florida A&M games.
- Went 3-of-3 with an RBI triple to left center and a stolen base in the 6-1 win over the Blue Demons (2/4).
- Continued her hot hitting by reaching base all four times against Gardner-Webb (3-3, BB) and scoring twice with a swiped base.
- Posted a 2-for-4 effort against the Lady Rattlers (2/5).
2004 - SOPHOMORE
- Finished fourth on the Lady Vol squad with a .322 average, and led the team in stolen bases (with 20 in 23 attempts), runs (tied with Lindsay Schutzler with 41) and sacrifices (17).
- Started 70 games, all in either center or left field.
- Hit .308 in NCAA Tournament play (fifth on the team).
- Went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored in the 10-0 win over Illinois-Chicago in NCAA Regionals.
- Earned SEC All-Tournament honors by hitting .429 (6-for-14), with a pair of runs and two stolen bases in Tuscaloosa.
- Went 5-for-7 (.714) in the sweep of Appalachian State, with three stolen bases and three runs.
- Climbed to fourth on the school’s all-time stolen base list, with 33 thefts. Kenyail Norris (1996-99) holds the record with 42 stolen bases.
- Scored a team-best three runs in the Ole Miss series and hit .250 (1-for-4).
- Wound up SEC play with a .284 showing and stole seven bases in nine attempts. Scored 16 runs to lead the Orange.
- Was 1-for-1 and had a couple of sacrifices in the beating of Radford on April 21.
- Produced a .400 (4-for-10) effort in UT’s first-ever sweep of Florida.
- Batted a scintillating .667 (6-for-9) at Arkansas and scored four runs.
- Was only 1-for-7 (.143) in the South Carolina series but turned in perhaps the defensive play of the year when she gunned down Samantha Jennings with a bullet from center field in a scoreless tie during the second game.
- Achieved all-tournament accolades at the Lady Vol Classic with a .286 (4-for-14) average, four runs, four sac bunts and two thefts.
- Out of the leadoff spot, Sarah was 2-for-4 in the doubleheader against Austin Peay, scored three runs and had a pair of thefts.
- Was 2-for-8 (.250) and scored twice during her first visit to Starkville, dropping her SEC clip to .231.
- Executed suicide squeeze to score Mandie Fishback and had a single in the 7-0 rout of Georgia Southern.
- Led the Orange with a 3-for-8 (.375) performance in Tuscaloosa, boosting her SEC average to .222 (4-for-18). Moved the Lady Vols in front during the first game against the Crimson Tide with a triple to center field in the fifth inning that scored Monica Abbott. Finished the game 2-for-3.
- Was injured during the first game of the Compass Bank Invitational, when she slammed into the center field wall. However, Sarah managed to play three of the four games left during the tournament. Chipped in a single in the championship tilt against Baylor.
- Debuted at home on Feb. 25 by going 1-for-5 (.200) in the doubleheader against ETSU with two runs and a pair of stolen bases.
- Was 1-for-5 during the Palm Springs Classic, with a base-hit in the 2-0 win over Baylor.
- Hit .385 (5-for-13) and scored six runs at the New Mexico State Kick-Off Invitational. Drew a pair of free passes in the second encounter with New Mexico State. Equaled career bests with three hits and three runs on her way to a 3-for-5 performance in the 16-3 slaughter of the Aggies on Feb. 14.
- Opened the campaign with a .300 (3-for-10) clip at the Paradise Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii.
- Went 2-for-3 and swiped second base in a 9-1 pasting of UAB on Feb. 6.
- Poked the second triple of her career, scored twice and walked twice during a nine-inning marathon against BYU.
- Ripped two hits in three at bats during the season-opening shutout of Saint Mary’s.
2003 - FRESHMAN
- Lone rookie to see action in all 70 games for Tennessee.
- Drew 56 starts in center field and two in right field.
- Rated fourth on the Lady Vols with a .320 batting average and closed her first SEC season at .288.
- Paced the squad with 38 runs and totaled three RBI.
- Set a rookie record with her 13 stolen bases and led Tennessee on the basepaths with a 13-for-18 effort.
- Chosen to the SEC’s All-Tournament squad, joining classmate Kristi Durant as the only UT rookies ever to achieve all-tourney.
- Over her four games in the SEC Tournament, Sarah had at least one hit in every outing en route to a .312 (5-for-16) showing.
- The centerfielder was 1-for-4 against the trio of No. 12 LSU, Auburn and No. 7 Georgia and went 2-for-4 in the heartbreaker to 16th-ranked Alabama; also chipped in with a team-high three runs and had a stolen base during the conference tournament.
- Dominated Lipscomb’s pitching for a 5-for-5 effort in a doubleheader on April 29. Was 2-for-2 with a sacrifice and a stolen base in the opener in Nashville and then went 3-for-3 with three runs, one theft and her first career triple in the second tilt against the Lady Bisons.
- Was the Lady Vols’ top hitter for the second- consecutive weekend after going 4-for-9 (.444) vs. Florida. Closed the series with a 3-for-4 outing against Jenny Gladding. Stole two bases in two chances versus the Gators.
- Contributed one hit in each of the contests against Auburn and finished the series 3-for-8 (.375).
- Earned the Jimmy Chitwood Defensive Player of the Game Award for a stellar performance in the first tilt with Kentucky.
- Cranked the first double of her career against Liberty on March 29.
- Went 3-for-9 (.333) in the Mississippi State series.
- Helped the Lady Vols to a comeback win over Princeton by poking two hits in three at bats in the nightcap.
- Was 2-for-3 in the upset of the Crimson Tide on March 15.
- Made her SEC debut with a 2-for-10 (.200) performance at No. 7 LSU. Went 1-for-3 against All-American Kristin Schmidt in the first game. Preserved the Orange’s 3-2 thriller over the Tigers with a diving snare of Julie Wiese’s liner to end the second outing.
- Was 2-for-3 with three runs in the doubleheader sweep over Belmont on March 5.
- Shined at the Golden Panther Invitational, as she batted .333 (5-for-15) and swiped four stolen bases in five attempts. Moved into the leadoff spot and started all five contests in center field.
- Was a bright spot during disappointing setback to Buffalo, as she took two bases in two chances.
- Saw action in all five games at the UNLV Mini Tournament, primarily in the outfield.
- Celebrated her 19th birthday with both her first hit and first RBI in the double-dip versus Appalachian State on Feb. 19. Plated Danielle Arriaga with an RBI grounder in the second inning of the first game. Led off the bottom of the first during the second tilt with an infield single.
- Came on as a pinch runner for Amber Rhinehart in her Lady Vol debut and scored UT’s lone run against San Jose State on Jan. 31.
HIGH SCHOOL
- Graduated from Maryville High School in Maryville, Tennessee, in 2002.
- A four-year letterwinner, she helped her squad to a pair of district championships, including an overall mark of 26-4 in her last season.
- Team finished as the state runner-up as she collected all-state recognition.
- Honored as the Spring Athlete of the Year for East Tennessee in 2002.
- Was a four-time All-Blount County selection between 1999-2002 and took home her team's Most Valuable Player hardware three consecutive seasons.
- Reaped all-district accolades three straight years and shared the program's co-Most Valuable Player honor in both 2000 and 2001.
- Earned MVP awards by herself as a senior from both the district and the county.
- Tossed seven no-hitters and shared one perfect game as a pitcher.
- Hit for the cycle in her first-ever high school start.
- Competed for the Maryville Magic club team for six seasons.
- Tabbed as an AAU 18-under All-American at age 16.
- A four-year standout for the Rebels' girls' basketball team, she captained the squad as a senior.
- Member of Maryville High School's planning committee and yearbook staff.
- Chosen as a Tennessee Valley Scholar.
- Was nominated for a Sears Excellence Award in 2000.
PERSONAL
- Full name is Sarah Elizabeth Fekete
- Born Feb. 19, 1984, in Birmingham, Alabama
- Daughter of Fred and Mary Ann Fekete
- Has a younger sister, Lisa
- Always dreamed of one day becoming a Lady Vol
- Cites her father to be her biggest influence because he always challenged her to work hard in order to accomplish her dreams.
- Academic major: Psychology
| HIGHS: | |
LADY VOL CAREER HIGHS At Bats: 5 (four times) Runs: 3 (three times) Hits: 3 (11 times) Hit Streak: 14 games (2/4-2/25/05) Combined Hit Streak: 24 games (5/11/04-2/25/05) Runs Batted In: 2 vs. Charleston Southern (2/18/05) Doubles: 1 (eight times) Triples: 1 (four times) Walks: 2 (seven times) Stolen Bases: 3 vs. Charleston Southern (2/18/05) |
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SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Nebraska (5.25.25)
Sunday, May 25
SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Nebraska (5.24.25)
Saturday, May 24
SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Nebraska (5.23.25)
Friday, May 23
SB | Tennessee Postgame vs. Ohio State (5.18.25)
Sunday, May 18
