Amy L. (Kalbarchick)Fries
- Post by: mcalibrary
- January 11, 2024
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INDUCTEE
Amy Fries has highlighted her athletic career with a brilliant four-year stint as the catcher of the Dickinson College Red Devil softball team. During her time in Carlisle, Amy established six single season records including best batting average – .464, slugging percentage – .712, total bases – 89, hits – 58, RBI’s – 38 and triples – 6. In her senior season, Amy started all 32 games as the catcher and was named to the second team ECAC South All Star team. As a junior, Fries started all 41 games and threw out 16 of 34 runners attempting to steal. Her .464 batting average ranked 51st in the nation among all Division III schools. Her team finished as the runner-up in the NCAA East Coast Atlantic Conference, while she was named to the 1995 ECAC South All Star Team as a catcher. Her exploits on the field earned her the Babe Ruth Sportsmanship Award, selected from all 5 women’s sports teams at Dickinson. She also served as co-captain of both the ‘95 and ‘96 Red Devils.
Amy honed her catching duties for head coach Mike Trocki’s Lady Tornado softball teams from 1989-1992. She also captained the 91 and 92 teams at MCA. As a senior, Amy helped the Lady Tornadoes to their first and only District XI Softball Championship. The Tornadoes would have a dream season in the Schuylkill League, ending Pottsville’s four-year unbeaten streak with a 2-1 win. Kalbarchick would score the first run off the Tide’s ace pitcher Andrea Smith in 55 consecutive innings. She also batted out of the 4-spot as the Tornadoes upended number one seed Northern Lehigh and would go on to defeat the number two seed Minersville by a 4-0 score. Minersville came into the game outscoring their opponents by a 20-1 margin and were the defending Dist XI Champions. Amy would contribute 2 hits and an RBI in the championship game. That Lady Tornado team with their 17-4 record, would set the standard for all future softball teams at Mount Carmel Area.
Fries also earned four letters in swimming and diving at MCA, where she also served as captain for 2 years. Amy continued to play softball as a member of the 1998-2002 Carlisle Area Women’s Slowpitch team and has a member of Carlisle Summerfair’s “battl of the sexes” softball all star team. Amy graduated from Dickinson College in 1996 with a BS in Mathematics and concentration in statistics and is currently an Analyst for Waste Management in Camp Hill. She and her husband, Tom, are the parents of a daughter, Cora.