Name: Kristie Fox
Year: Freshman
Position: Shortstop
Hometown: San Diego
Freshman shortstop Kristie Fox beat on the Sun Devils' pitching last weekend in No. 1 Arizona's sweep over Arizona State. Fox had five RBIs on four hits in the series and went 3-for-3 with four RBIs and a home run in the first game.
Fox has filled in well for her predecessor, All-America shortstop Lovie Jung, hitting .387, eighth in the Pacific 10 Conference. She's eighth in the Pac-10 in home runs and seventh in the conference in total bases.
Fox, a two-time member of the Junior Olympic team, took a break from knocking around pitchers to talk to the Wildcat about her aspirations to become an FBI agent, her amazing genes and former UA star Trevor Hoffman.
Wildcat: So, how do you think the year has gone for you?
Fox: It's been good so far. I've been hitting pretty good and working hard on defense, so it has been going well.
Wildcat: Do you ever get kind of tired of hearing about Lovie Jung?
Fox: Yeah, it gets old, but being compared to a great player is not that bad.
Wildcat: What was it like to hit a home run off Jennie Finch?
Fox: It was really exciting. She's a great pitcher and to hit off her really boosts your confidence a lot; makes you feel like you can hit against anyone on any given day.
Wildcat: What was it like to play on the Junior Olympic team?
Fox: It was really fun going to another country to play for the USA. It was really exciting; to play for your country is like nothing I've ever felt before. Hopefully it is going to feel like it is supposed to feel when we win the World Series (laughs). Hopefully it will be something like that.
Wildcat: Are you going to put that on your resumŽ when you apply to be an FBI agent, that you were on the USA team?
Fox: Of course. They look for a lot of diverse types of people and athletes. They like athletes, so hopefully that will help my resumŽ out.
Wildcat: So your dad played for the (NFL's St. Louis, formerly Los Angeles) Rams?
Fox: Yeah, he played football. He played for the Rams a little bit and played in the USFL. He played for the (Chicago) Blitz and my mom was a cheerleader, so I've got some good genes.
Wildcat: Is that where they met, at a football game?
Fox: My mom was a cheerleader for the Blitz and my dad was a football player, and that's how they met.
Wildcat: So your dad was your ASA coach?
Fox: Yeah, he coached me all through travel ball. It's really rough having your dad as a coach but I really feel like he made me a lot better.
Wildcat: Could you tell your funny softball story again?
Fox: What story?
Wildcat: The one from usasoftball.com, the one where ... like in your bio thing.
Fox: I can't remember. What was it?
Wildcat: It was about the ...
Fox: Oh, when I was little?
Wildcat: Yeah.
Fox: Well, when I was little, when I was just learning to hit off a tee, my dad was trying to teach me how to keep my eye on the ball, and he told me to keep my eye on the ball, so I grabbed the ball and I stuck it right on my eye (laughs). Apparently that's not what he meant, though.
Wildcat: So do you like the Padres?
Fox: Yeah, being from San Diego. They're supposed to be pretty good this year.
Wildcat: What do you think of their new stadium?
Fox: I haven't been there, but my family went there for the San Diego State game - the very first game that was played there - and they said it was amazing, so I'm hoping to get out there and see a couple games.
Wildcat: Have you met Trevor Hoffman?
Fox: Yeah. Trevor Hoffman, actually, his kids played for the same soccer club as my family, so we see him at the soccer field all the time. I talk to him sometimes.
Wildcat: Normally they don't like to do a lot of Athletes of the Week from the same sport, but this is like the fifth for softball (this semester) (Editor's note: It's actually the fourth.) and the second in a row. What do you think about that?
Fox: Softball players are fun and exciting, so people want to hear about them (laughs).