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One of the most productive hitters in the annals of area women’s slow-pitch, Patty Kinghorn will join the Trenton Softball Hall of Fame at its 40th annual Induction and Scholarship Awards dinner at the end of April.
A member of a family from Cuba who developed her love for the sport at a very early age, Kinghorn grew up playing baseball with boys in Babylon, N.Y., before moving to Hillsborough and making a Little League team at the age of 10.
After getting her start in slow pitch as a teenager in a league in Branchburg, Kinghorn went to George Washington University on a full basketball scholarship. Shortly thereafter Kinghorn came back to the area and met Rainey Turi. A future Trenton Softball Hall of Famer, Turi invited Kinghorn to try out for the very successful Three Seasons team of the highly competitive Mercer Women’s A League.
Three Seasons coach Sandy Oropel quickly spotted Kinghorn’s talent and invited her to join the team in 1984. As a result, Kinghorn excelled for Three Season for a decade in both league and tournament play. In one of those years she was named the Best Female Player in the area by The -.
While playing with Three Seasons, Kinghorn became aware that many members of that squad had played with the Trenton State College national powerhouse team coached by Dr. June Walker. At this time she was also noticed by Debbie Simpson, who was the coach of the rival Miller Beer team and actively involved in TSC athletics.
Simpson arranged for Kinghorn to receive a tryout for the Trenton State College team and she ended up playing for the Lions before graduating from the college in 1992.
“The luck of meeting Rainey Turi, to be accepted by the Three Seasons softball team, and to go back to school to get my degree and play softball for TSC changed my life forever,” said Kinghorn. “It allowed me to shine, get noticed and push me back to college so that I could pursue a degree in statistics and get my dream jobs.”
This year’s inductees in the Men’s Player Division are Charles Maxwell, Mike Matto, Mark Drew, Frank DiRe, Eddie Rosado and Chris Russell. The women’s players who will be inducted are Kinghorn and Kerin Pearson.
In addition, Frank Pasquito will be inducted in the Player/Manager Division, and Princeton’s Van Service’s Lou Decibus is this year’s inductee in the Sponsorship Division.
Six current high school athletes who play either softball or baseball will also receive scholarships.
The banquet, which lasts from 4 to 8 p.m., will be held on the Sunday of April 30 at John Henry’s Stone Terrace in Hamilton Township. Tickets are $65 per person and can be purchased by calling Artie Kearns at 609-771-6143 or Ed Fedorko at 609-226-6648.
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