"I think that the adrenaline that comes with performing is my favorite part of the game," she says.
Of course by all accounts, softball is more than a game for Ashby.
"She does it for enjoyment and because it's life and it's her, it's part of her," Bako says.
It's what's driven her to work hard and perform at an All-Pacific League, All-CIF, All-Area and All-State level. It's one of the reasons she's off to one of the country's finest universities in the fall. For Ashby, softball has been hours and years of practice, extra practice and too many games to count.
"It's a huge part of my life, but I can't imagine it without it," she says.
And, at least for the foreseeable future, she won't have to.
"Stanford will be a big jump," Berry says. "Academically, it's one of the better schools and they have a good [softball] program.
"She'll continue to work hard and she's got that drive that will continue to help her do well."
Though the level of competition and the stakes will no doubt rise when Ashby dons a Cardinal uniform, it's clear that the approach that has led to a lasting legacy at Crescenta Valley will remain unchanged.
"I'm really a little taken aback by it in the sense that it's a whole new ballgame," Ashby says. "It's a different level, it's a big challenge and that's exciting, but I really have to work hard and I have to prove myself."
If nothing more, four seasons removed from being a freshman overshadowed among an all-star cast, Erin Ashby moves on having proven herself as the area's best — once again.
