In August, Mo’Ne Davis grabbed the nation’s attention with her fierce 70-mph fastball and waist-length braids at the Little League World Series tournament. As the only girl on the Philadelphia Taney Dragons all-star team, Davis became the first girl in the 75-year history of the Little League World Series to pitch a shutout in the tournament, reported Sports Illustrated.
Her baseball accomplishments impacted girls and boys around the country. Social media was flooded with memes inspired by the gifted pitcher. “You play like a girl” read one with a smiling Davis.
Not surprising, the Philly native was featured on many national media outlets like the New York Times,
ESPN.com, Teen Vogue and more. The 5-foot-4 inch, poised eighth grader even landed on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s August issue. The historic decision was a no-brainer for the editors at SI. “It’s the easiest type of story to identify as a cover story, SI’s managing editor Chris Stone said on August 19, after the issue was released.incontent-ad3">Since her dynamic summer, Davis has earned a book deal with HarperCollins, named one of TIME magazine’s “25 Most Influential Teens of 2014, appeared in a Spike Lee-directed car commercial, has her Carolina blue and maroon Taney Dragon displayed in baseball’s Hall of Fame.
And, most recently, Sports Illustrated for Kids has named Davis its Sports Kid of the Year.
First Lady Michelle Obama congratulated Davis on Twitter followed with a girls rock like remark: “You knocked it out of the park for girls everywhere.”
Not bad for a 13-year-old.