STRATTANVILLE, Pa. (EYT/D9) — It was a sun-drenched early spring day and Abby Knapp was finally able to slip on her softball hat, glove and cleats and hit the field with her Clarion-Limestone teammates for practice.
During a fielding drill, Knapp tracked a fly ball, then lost it in the sun.
Then she felt the thump and shock of the ball crashing into her upper lip.
(Pictured above, Abby Knapp smiles as she displays her home run ball — the first of the junior’s career)
It pushed one of her front teeth back, which she eventually lost. Chipped a piece off the other — she may lose that one, too. Left her upper lip cut and swollen.
Knapp’s first reaction?
“Hey, take a picture,” she said, laughing.
Clarion-Limestone Area High School sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Redbank Chevrolet and DuBrook.
Through her life, Knapp has been able to turn negatives into positives with an unflappable attitude forged by tackling obstacles.
More trials than most.
In the first grade she was held back a year because of dyslexia. When she was 13, she was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and has battled anxiety most of her young life.
Through it all, Knapp has found ways to cope by channelling what could have held her back into propelling her forward.
“Honestly, to me, it’s just normal,” Knapp said. “I’ve kind of dealt with it my whole life. I really just get hyper and it helps me play even better. I can hype my team up very easily because I’m very outgoing.”
Knapp learned early on that the best way to deal was to stay busy.
Very busy.
Knapp plays volleyball, softball and is on the track and field team at Clarion-Limestone. She is also a cheerleader.
“I fill up my whole schedule with sports,” Knapp said. “And I play my heart out.”
The junior is certainly leaving it all on the field this season for Clarion-Limestone.
She’s batting .471 and hit her first career home run on Wednesday against Cranberry.
When she hit it, she had no idea it had the distance to clear the outfield fence. So, Knapp did what she always does when she makes solid contact.
She put her head down and sprinted.
Eventually, she realized the ball had indeed gone over the fence when she caught glimpse of the umpire’s home run hand signal. That’s when she finally slowed into a swift trot and realized she had accomplished one of her big goals for the season.
“I wanted a home run this year,” Knapp said. “I thought it hit the fence so I was bolting like I always do because I thought I could at least get to third before they could throw me out. But when I saw the umpire do the little swirl thing with his finger, I was like, ‘Oh, this is cool.’ Honestly, I had no idea what I was thinking.”
The outfielder’s speed is one of her biggest strengths.
It serves her in multiple sports.
On the track team, she’s a sprinter, running the 100-meter dash, the 200-meter dash, the 400-meter run, as well as participating in the long jump.
She joined the track and field team last season because Clarion-Limestone needed a sprinter to fill out its promising 4×100 relay.
“Sadly, we don’t have a relay this year,” Knapp said. “We just don’t have enough girls and coach doesn’t want to tire us out for other events.”
Knapp is a libero on the volleyball team — fitting because her personality is perfect for the demanding position.
She’s aggressive. Fearless. Willing to put her body on the line for the team.
But if she had to pick a favorite of all her activities, she said it would have to be softball.
“I feel like volleyball is getting up there, though,” She said.
Knapp has another goal for this year.
Finish with more home runs than she has missing teeth.
“Right!” she said, laughing.
Even though she has to wait for her permanent replacement tooth to come — she as a temporary one now — she doesn’t have to wait to decide her future.
That is already clear and in place in her mind.
She wants to teach math to younger kids.
Dealing with numbers has always been easier than dealing with words for Knapp because of her dyslexia, even though she has learned to manage it.
It took awhile.
“It took me probably until the third grade almost to where I got myself better to where I could go back into a classroom and not have to go to extra classes to help with my reading and speech,” Knapp said. “I still find myself once in awhile mixing up a p and a q.”
Knapp has always been drawn to younger children. She can relate to them.
And them to her.
“I like hanging out with little kids,” Knapp said. “They’ve always liked me and I’ve always liked them. I don’t know, we just always seem to get along.”
Knapp said she is aware with all she has overcome and is still tackling, she can be a role model to others.
She already is in a way.
“My little cousin does,” Knapp said. “She looks up to me a lot because she suffers with autism. She wants to be around me and do what I do. I really do try to help her.”
Knapp said her dyslexia, anxiety and ADHD are always going to be there. And that’s OK. It’s part of who she is and she likes the person she has become.
“I just turn it all around and make it a positive,” Knapp said. “I’d rather do that than focus on all the negatives about it.”
Clarion-Limestone Area High School sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Redbank Chevrolet and DuBrook.
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