Rebels shortstop receives city softball player-of-the-year award

Rebels shortstop receives city softball player-of-the-year award
by Dan Plouffe, Orleans Star

Orléans Rebels shortstop Jenny Allen was chosen as the city’s top softball player for 2009 at the Ottawa Sports Awards banquet this past Wednesday at Algonquin College.

“I was completely shocked,” says Allen, who was the Rebels’ top batter this year. “It was a lot of hard work this summer, and it paid off.”

The big reward for Allen and her team was winning a bronze medal at the national championships. Allen, who also acts as assistant coach for the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees and played basketball for Algonquin, and her teammates were competing at the senior level for the first time this past summer since a few team members were no longer eligible for the 23-and-under tournament.

“Everyone kept saying, ‘Who’s Orléans and why are they winning?’” recounts Allen, a Colonel By Secondary School grad.

“We were huge underdogs heading into nationals and we ended up coming out with a bronze medal.

“We were ecstatic. It’s the biggest accomplishment we could have asked for.”