Azzurre captain Erika Piancastelli makes Team Italy a top priority

Former NCAA All-American Erika Piancastelli is the face of Team Italy softball. The Azzurre captain recently graduated from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where she set a total of 20 career and single-season records including runs scored, RBI, and home runs during her historic and illustrious four-year career. Her mind-blowing numbers support the claim that Erika Piancastelli is the greatest athlete in the school's 80-year history. Having led the Cowgirls softball team to the 2018 NCAA Regionals in late May, Erika Piancastelli and McNeese State University were cut short of advancing to the Super Regionals, the precursor to the Women's College World Series. McNeese head coach James Landreneau remarked, “I don’t know if words will ever do justice for what she’s done for us. Erika is, besides being talented is one of the most humble people I’ve ever met. Her ability to just be able to move around positions and handle locker room, handle success with such grace and stay humble through the process. It’s just been special to be a part of. It’s not often that you get to coach a kid that is that talented. She’s just so much more than just a great player, and I think that’s just very unique to find."

She’s one of the greatest athletes I’ve ever seen.” Tim Brown, father of McNeese teammate Lauren Brown and coach of a much-respected Texas travel softball squad, echoed the positive sentiment with his comment, “There are a lot of great kids on the team, but Erika is up there. She is one of the greatest players of all-time...one of the top 20 softball players in the country.” Erika Piancastelli credits her collegiate experience at McNeese as time well spent in becoming the complete ballplayer. She affirmed, "McNeese was great. It was a great experience, the best four years I have ever had playing softball. The coaches helped me tremendously, and the girls were always there supporting me so I think McNeese will always have a place in my heart. I have to thank them for where I am today."

After graduating from McNeese State University with a degree in Exercise Science, Erika Piancastelli began her professional softball career playing for Scrap Yard Fast Pitch, a travel team with its state-of-the-art training facilities and home field located just a two-hour drive west of her alma mater near Houston, Texas. Before returning to Italy in preparation for the Women's Softball World Championship in Japan, the Team Italy captain and slugger played with Scrap Yard Fast Pitch in two shutout victories over Puerto Rico and Chinese Taipei during the USA Softball World Cup in Irvine, California.

Erika Piancastelli believes playing professional softball is her natural calling, and stated, "Playing for Scrap Yard Fast Pitch was the perfect fit for me. Knowing that they get to play international teams was a huge thing for me, especially getting ready to go and train with Italy. Just being with all these great girls and learning from them for three months is a great experience. But I think it is a very big deal that will help me a lot in the next few years."

Between Scrap Yard Fast Pitch games, Erika Piancastelli flew overnight to Rome for a video shoot commemorating the 70th anniversary of Federazione Italiana Baseball Softball (FIBS). She is featured with Team Italy softball standouts Greta Cecchetti, Veronica Comar, and Marta Gasparotto. Team Italy baseball all-stars Nico Garbella, Mattia Mercuri, Luca Panerati, and Alessandro Vaglio also appear in the FIBS video. Despite a touch-and-go visit, Erika Piancastelli is glad she was able to participate and contribute to the 70th anniversary FIBS video. She enthusiastically said, "That was amazing. It was very tiring but definitely worth it. Flying and then doing a shoot overnight, not sleeping and then flying back. Definitely something I would not trade for the world being able to be in Italy, even if it was only 18 hours. Being able to eat some food, stay with my friends and be in Italy was worth it."

Softball is a family affair for the Piancastellis. Her mother, Loredana Auletta, also represented Team Italy and was the catcher for the Azzurre in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. A seven-year veteran for Team Italy, Erika Piancastelli is following in her mother's path while making history as the most decorated player in the history of Italian softball. Playing for Team Italy in the 2020 Olympics would be both a privilege and an honor for Erika Piancastelli as she declared, "It is a dream come true for me. Just being able to represent and play for my country and follow my mom’s footsteps. Being able to be in Italy with all of my family and being able to say I’m home and being able to play for my home country is awesome."

Team Italy has an opportunity to turn the tables in a rematch against the softball powerhouse Japan in the WBSC Women's Softball World Championship opener on August 2, 2018. Japan, winner of the 2018 Asia Pacific Cup, was nearly upset by Team Italy without the services of NCAA All-American captain Erika Piancastelli in the 26-game international tournament on February 1, 2018.  "I think going to Japan is definitely a building block for us. We’re going to see where we are at right now. We're going to compete as hard as we can and just really put our name out there. And we are going to show where Italy is right now. I think Japan is going to be a huge milestone for us to see where we need to improve on and where we need to be when 2020 comes. Right now, our goal is just to train for 2020. Our biggest goal is to qualify for the Olympics. For me right now, I am going to continue to play as much softball as possible, whether that is in Italy or in the U.S. I am just going back and forth and learning more and more," indicated Erika.

Impressed with Team Italy manager Enrico Obletter along with coaches Federico Pizzolini and Lisa Birocci-Banse, Erika Piancastelli subscribes to the Azzurre coaching staff's belief that anything is possible. Collectively they bring the right combination of experience and drive to catapult Team Italy to the next level. She mentioned, "I think they bring a lot of elements. They bring energy, they bring grit, they bring competition. They really know what they are doing. They know where Italy is trying to go. I think they are the best people to push us at practice every day and in games. They believe in every single player. I think it really shows, and I think it brings us closer as a team and makes us want to keep competing."

Erika Piancastelli takes her responsibilities seriously as Team Italy catcher and captain. She never can do enough on the field for her team and her teammates to ensure the success of the Azzurre squad. "I think as a catcher, it’s a huge role. You see the whole entire field. You see every play. You see where the ball should go. And also knowing your pitcher, knowing what they need to calm them down, or what they need from me as a catcher to let them know they are going wrong or where they need to hit their spots. I think that having that catcher/pitcher communication and relationship is very important. So, I think not only does being a catcher is being a leader on the field, but also having the relationship with your team as the captain is important as well," replied Erika.

The future looks bright both for Erika Piancastelli and for softball in Italy. Having won the 2018 U19 and U22 Women's Softball European Championship titles, Team Italy now parlays its success in Europe into the in Chiba, Japan from August 2-12, 2018. Erika Piancastelli confirmed, "I think softball is growing in Italy right now. I think that if everyone just continues to keep believing in softball and believing in Italy then growing together as our teams combine...it’s a great start." Forza #Italia! #LetsMakeItHappen

by Roberto Angotti