Meredith Heckel-LaRue admits to being nervous before her first at-bat in college, but it didn’t show. Heckel-LaRue launched a home run the first time she stepped to the plate in a game at UA-Pine Bluff. “Meredith was one of the most competitive and naturally gifted players I’ve ever coached,” says Cotton Blossoms Coach Alvy Early. “She was a powerful hitter and allowed us to do something I’d never done before. We put her in the lead-off spot and we started a lot of games ahead 1-0. She played with a passion that very few players exhibit.”
A product of Lake Hamilton High School where she was primarily a shortstop, Heckel-LaRue made a quick transition to first base at UAM. She became an instant starter as a freshman on a team that won the 2005 Gulf South Conference championship, earning the first of four straight All-GSC honors.
During a spectacular junior year in 2007, she set single-season records for home runs (22), slugging percentage (.836), at-bats (226) and runs scored (72) while batting .438. That performance was good enough to earn All-America honors from Daktronics (second team) and the National Fast-Pitch Coaches Association (third team). She was also first team All-South Region and the GSC West Division Player of the Year. “I remember when I broke the single season home run record,” says Heckel-LaRue. “I wasn’t sure if it was fair or foul at first. That’s one of my favorite memories.”
A stand-out in the classroom as well as on the diamond, Heckel-LaRue made the GSC All-Academic Team and the ESPN/CoSIDA Academic All-District Team in 2006, ’07 and ’08 and was an NFCA Academic All-American in 2007.
When she completed her UAM career, Heckel-LaRue held career records for home runs (51), total bases (470) and runs scored (180). In 2010, she was named to the Gulf South Conference All-Decade First Team.
Heckel-LaRue, her husband, Brad, and their sons – Braddox, 2, and Jack, 4 months, will soon be moving from Hot Springs to Russellville, where Meredith has accepted a promotion to sales representative for United Rentals.
She still has fond memories of her UAM career. “I don’t miss the 5 a.m. workouts, but the friendships I made and getting to play for Coach Early will always be special to me,” she says.
