By Rich Chrampanis
MIDDLETOWN – The windmill motion of a fast-pitch softball pitcher is a true art form. Middletown High School North’s Malori Bell has found the knack for devastating opposing batters over the past four years with a tireless attack of fast-paced and accurate pitches.
On May 2, it wasn’t a question of if but when Malori Bell would make New Jersey high school softball history. In the first inning of the Lions 5-0 win over Ocean Township, Bell recorded her second strikeout to reach 1,000 career strikeouts.
“Of course I thought about it,” Bell said following the game. “But I tried on the mound to pitch my game and hoped the strikeouts came.”
She became just the 20th player in the history of the state’s rich softball heritage to reach the milestone. It was just the start of a 13-strikeout effort, her 16th game that saw the senior reach double digits in fanning batters. She spent the first two years of her varsity career at Keansburg High School before transferring to Middletown North last season. Her former teammates made the trip to Middletown to witness the historic moment, a testament to the impact she had as a teammate to both of her teams.
“It couldn’t happen to a better player, a better kid,” coach Chris Hoffman said. “It was awesome to see that her Keansburg teammates were here because she had about 400 strikeouts there. Last year she came in here and helped us with her 14 teammates win the first sectional title that this school has won in the past 25 years. She walked right in here and the kids accepted her and we gelled together.”
“I was nervous about it when I first came,” Bell said. “But these girls are amazing. They welcomed me in just like I was one of them. I love being a part of this team. I love Middletown North.”
Malori is thankful to her coaches and teammates for helping her reach the incredible achievement and especially her family who were always there to support her goals on and off the softball field.
“She worked very hard,” Malori’s father Mike Bell said. “All winter long she drove back and forth to the training facility lifting weights, pitching, hitting. I’m glad it all paid off for her. The most memorable times were the early wakeups, the long rides, the arguing on the ride home over mistakes, me overreacting. I can’t say enough about her. She put a lot of work in.”
Her tireless work ethic paid off with a Division I scholarship to Fairleigh Dickinson University where she will look to make an immediate impact in Hackensack.
“No one’s going to work harder than her,” Hoffman said. “I would be shocked if she didn’t walk in there right away and contribute and play. She hits the ball, too, which no one really talks about. Whether it’s with the bat or on the mound, they’re getting a tough kid. The kid will do anything for her coaches or her teammates and they’re super lucky to have her.”
It’s been quite a senior year already for Bell on the mound. She opened the season with a no-hitter against Neptune and followed that with a perfect game against Matawan.
Her 233 strikeouts this year are the most in the state and with a 14-4 record including 13 shutouts, Middletown North is looking to repeat as a sectional champ and take the next step to an elusive state championship.
“I love this group of girls just as much as I did last year,” Bell said. “I hope we can achieve the same goals, if not maybe go further.”
