Michele Marie Granger (born January 15, 1970) is an American, former collegiate four-time

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

First Team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

and 1996 gold medal-winning Olympian

softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. She played

college softball College softball is softball as played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education, predominantly in the United States. College softball is normally played by women at the Intercollegiate level, whereas college baseball is nor ...

for four seasons, over five years, for

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. She won a gold medal at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

with Team USA. She currently holds numerous pitching records for the Bears, and is the

Pac-12 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level for all sports, and its Co ...

career leader in perfect games, no hitters, shutouts and

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

, simultaneously holding the NCAA lead in no-hitters (25), along with several other top-10 career records. She is a USA Softball Hall of Fame inductee.

Valencia High School

Granger was a standout pitcher from 1985–1988 and still holds national top-10 records for career

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

(0.10), no-hitters (36) and

strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

(1,635). On two occasions she also struck out a single-game record 21 batters over 7

during her 1986 and 1987 campaigns. Against La Mirada High School on June 2, 1988, Granger ended her career tallying 40 strikeouts in the Southern Section 3-A softball semifinals. As a sophomore, Granger would also make her first Team USA roster during the summer of 1986 and competed at the World Championships under head coach Ralph Raymond. She remained a member until after the

1996 Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

College

1989:
On February 16, Granger tossed her first career

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

against the New Mexico State Aggies, an 8-0, 5-inning perfect game. Owing to an inflammation in her pitching hand, Granger withdrew midway through the season to recover. 1990:
Resuming her freshman season, Granger twirled 5 no-hitters (a season top-5 and

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

tying Freshman Class record), led her team with a career best ERA and posted the best strikeout ratio with the most strikeouts in the

to garner National Fastpitch Coaches' Association

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n status and All-

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

honors. This also led her to a conference Triple Crown for the best ERA, wins and strikeout totals. 1991:
Granger threw four no-hitters and one perfect game. She broke and set school season records for wins, strikeouts (both led the

) and shutouts, all of which now rank top-5 all-time for the Bears; she also set a career best

WHIP A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

. And she maintained her hold on the best season strikeout ratio, improving by two strikeouts per inning from the previous year, and strikeouts overall for that year to again be honored

n and All-

. For one of her no-hitters, Granger set a school,

Sophomore Class and overall single 7-inning game record for strikeouts when she whiffed 21 batters in a 3-0 win over the

Creighton Bluejays The Creighton Bluejays, or Jays, are the athletic teams that represent Creighton University, a Jesuit/Catholic University in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. They compete in NCAA Division I in the Big East Conference. Sports sponsored Base ...

on March 22, 1991. 1992:
Adding 6 more no-hitters (another top-5

season record), two perfect games and all-season honors, Granger would break her own shutout record by pitching 26, which is the Junior Class record and was second all-time only to Debbie Nichols'

total of 36, set in 1988. In addition, that season's no-hitters gave her a career 16 to break the record originally held by Lisa Ishikawa (14). That year Granger led her team to the only

Women's College World Series The Women's College World Series (WCWS) is the final portion of the NCAA Division I softball tournament for college softball in the United States and is held annually in Oklahoma City, OK. The event is held at Devon Park (stadium), Devon Park loca ...

appearance of her career. She responded by shutting out the USF Bulls in their opening game but eventually suffered their second loss 2-0 to defending champions the

Arizona Wildcats The Arizona Wildcats are the sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Arizona, located in Tucson, Arizona, Tucson. The Wildcats compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Divis ...

. 1993:
As a senior, Granger posted 9 no-hitters (one a perfect game) and for the final time repeated all-season honors. Her no-hitters are the Senior Class and all-time

season record; she also set the career record by reaching 25. For her fourth

n honor, Granger, along with

Lisa Fernandez Lisa Maria Fernandez (born February 22, 1971) is an American former softball player and current associate head coach at UCLA Bruins softball, UCLA. She is also the general manager of the Talons for the inaugural 2025 season of the Athletes Unlim ...

became the first

softball players to be named to the First Team in four consecutive seasons. She broke her own strikeout total with 484, which led the conference and Nation—as she had all three years prior—and set a new

season record, bettering Lisa Ishikawa's 1984 total of 469. On February 22, she broke Shawn Andaya's career strikeout record in an 8-0 win over the

Northwestern Wildcats The Northwestern Wildcats are the athletic teams that represent Northwestern University, located in Evanston, Illinois. Northwestern is a founding member of the Big Ten Conference and one of two private universities in the conference, the other ...

. Granger would reach a career record total of 1,640 and currently remains inside the top-10 all-time. On March 28 Granger threw her 85th career shutout over the Sacramento State Hornets to claim a new

record. At the close of the season she would have a grand total of 94, now second best all-time. Granger set another single-game record in a 12-inning battle with the

Oregon Ducks The Oregon Ducks are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Oregon, located in Eugene, Oregon, Eugene. The Ducks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCA ...

on March 30, posting a career best 26 strikeouts to crack the record of 25 held by Debbie Doom. This single-game record now stands second all-time in the

and is the Senior Class record. Granger would depart with

California Golden Bears The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...

career records in wins, innings pitched, shutouts and strikeouts and still claims school dominance in all those categories except wins. She holds the now-named

Pac-12 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

innings and shutout records, as well as strikeouts for both her single-game record totals. Finally, she holds the no-hitter crown at 25 and ranks second all-time in shutouts, third in perfect games (5), 6th in innings, 9th in strikeouts and 15th in ERA overall (10th for a four-year career) in the

1996 Olympics

Granger prepared to compete in the inaugural softball tournament to be held in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

while working and living in

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

. After completing the exhibition tour, she would throw the first pitch ever in the Olympics in a 10-0 win over

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. Granger struck out 10 and only gave up two hits and a walk. On July 30, she would post her second win in the gold medal game in which Team USA defeated

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

3-1, with Granger pitching the first 5 plus innings, giving up a run, a walk and striking out 8 batters. In 16-innings, Granger had two wins, gave up two earned runs and collected 25 strikeouts, all while three-months pregnant. Granger was second on the team in strikeouts and innings pitched.

Post-playing career

Granger was inducted in the

Hall of Fame in her first year of eligibility. She nabbed her second and third Hall of Fame entries on the same night, November 9, 2006, by being inducted into the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) and International Softball Federation (ISF) Softball Halls of Fame. She worked on the coaching staff of the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

Lady Volunteers softball team and currently volunteers at Sierra College while coaching high school softball.

Statistics

California Golden Bears The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...

Team USA

References

Links

* NCAA Division I softball career strikeouts list * NCAA Division I softball career wins list * NCAA Division I softball career -1.00 ERAs list

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Granger, Michele 1970 births Living people American softball players Softball players Softball players from California California Golden Bears softball players American softball coaches Tennessee Lady Volunteers softball coaches Olympic softball players for the United States Olympic gold medalists for the United States in softball Softball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Placentia, California