‘Lorry’ made her first senior state team at age 16 and retired at age 36. A career spanning over 20 years.
There’s something solitary about the pitcher on the mound readying for the one-on-one contest against the batter.
Hers is the most crucial position on the diamond. She controls the pace of the game, kicks off each play, sets the tone for her team, and is on guard to stop bases being stolen.
From within her arsenal of pitches, she’ll work with the catcher to decide on the next pitch. She’ll seek to outwit batters thinking one step ahead and keeping her head when the pressure is on.
That was Lorry Brown’s role for 20 years for the SA State team, captaining SA for 10. She was fast and moved the ball around the strike zone with lethal accuracy.
She was the No. 1 pitcher for Australia for eight years, including two world championships. She pitched the game in which Australia won the bronze medal at the 1974 World Softball Championships in the USA.
Given the influence of the pitcher, Lorry Brown was SA’s pre-eminent player at the national championships. Afterall, she made her first senior state team at 16 and retired at 36.
Unsurprisingly perhaps, that trophy is named in her honour – The Lorraine Brown Trophy for the Most Valuable Player in the South Australian Open Women’s Team.
Further to that, she is a triple winner of the SA Softball Association Player of the Year – 1972, 1973, 1975.
At club level, Lorry Brown was the driving force behind the Sturt Softball Club for decades, including two stints each of 12 years as President.
She was elected to the Australian Softball Hall of Fame in 1989, and the South Australian Softball Hall of Fame in 2009. Her career has also included many years of umpiring and coaching.
Little wonder she was awarded an OAM in 2018 for her remarkable 58 years of service to softball in SA.
