NiJaree Canady sliced a rise ball through the evening air, leaving it hovering over the plate just long enough to fool Ole Miss catcher Lexie Brady. Swing, miss, strikeout.
Then came Canady’s footstomp, a thunderous statement from the best player in the game, a celebration of joy, dominance and swagger that has catapulted her into the mainstream. The “NiJa stomp” has echoed around Devon Park, home of the Women’s College World Series, over the last week as Canady asserts herself in the circle, celebrating each strikeout — and doing it loudly.
“I am definitely stomping with her,” said former James Madison pitcher Odicci Alexander, who played in the 2021 WCWS. “There is so much shine on her. Some people are like, why is she stomping, why are you stomping with her? But I’m like, ‘Girl, put a hole in the ground.’”
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Win or lose, NiJaree Canady is the face of college softball — and her star is only rising
