Meghan King pitching as Florida State Softball defeat the Eagles of Boston College 5-0 on Military Appreciation Day on April 19. Photo by Perrone Ford. Courtesy FSU.
By: Matt Rothman
Parkland native Meghan King has not just gone on to the Florida State Seminoles to become one of the best pitchers for the reigning national champions, she has become one of the best pitchers in the entire country.
King, a redshirt senior majoring in child and family sciences, has been named one of 10 finalists for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award as well as being named a finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year.
“I am beyond thankful for getting the opportunity to play at Florida State,” said King. “I have made so many memories. I have grown as a person and a player and I am forever in debt to the program for taking a chance on me.
King was a part of the St. Thomas Aquinas 2013 and 2014 FHSAA Class 7A State Championship. In 2014, she allowed just .25 runs per game, winning 20 games and striking out a remarkable 226 batters. She also added a couple of no-hitters and a perfect game as well.
Courtesy Meghan King
While at FSU, King redshirted her freshman season while competing for the junior and full Puerto Rico National Team during the summer placing third in the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WSBC) Junior Championship with 60.2 innings pitched and a record of 6-3 and 0.57 ERA.
She then went on to win 78 games her first three years at FSU including 26 during the Seminoles first-ever national championship in 2016. In the College World Series, she set a record with a .20 ERA, which is the lowest total in the history of the tournament.
“It’s an opportunity as a softball player that you dream of since you are little,” said King. “Winning the national championship was an absolute dream. I am beyond thankful that I got the opportunity to play with my senior class as I could.”
On April 24, King recorded her 100th career win versus Troy. She now sits seven wins shy of tying Lacey Waldrop’s record of 109 careers wins. King can accomplish that feat sometime in the ACC Tournament or the NCAA tournament with just one series in the regular season left for the Seminoles.
Florida State is having another spectacular year as they are currently ranked sixth in the nation with a 45-8 record. While King knows it would be special to break the wins record, her main focus as well as her teammates in to get back to Oklahoma City where they can win another national championship.
Living nearly six hours from her Pine Tree Estates home, King doesn’t get to spend too much time in Parkland anymore, but makes the most of her time during holidays and summers.
“I think Parkland is a great place to grow up. The people are the nicest people in the world, and I am just thankful that I grew up in such a strong tight-knit community.”
King’s parents are Karen and Michael and she has one brother who attends Stetson University, and a sister, Kaitlin, who, like her, is a pitcher for St. Thomas Aquinas.
With graduation in less than a month away, King will begin nursing school in August and hopes to continue her softball career with the Puerto Rican National Team with a dream of playing in the Olympics.
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