There was no countdown. No pressure in the moment. Just a swing. That’s exactly how Alexis Huey broke the record.

“I didn’t even know,” Huey said. “After the game, they told me and I was like, ‘What? I just did that?’ ”

Huey started playing softball when she was seven years old. Before it became competitive, it was just something she did with friends.

“I think I just started like officially around seven,” Huey said. “But even when I was younger, I always had a bat and ball in my hand.”

Her first memories of the game are small ones: T-ball fields, running bases, and being around people she knew.

“It was fun because all my friends were there,” Huey said. “So I was just hanging out with them.”

Softball was also something she grew up around at home. Her dad played baseball and later coached her, and her family stayed closely involved in sports.

“My dad was a big baseball fan,” Huey said. “He played slow-pitch softball too, so I kind of grew up around it.”

Even though softball was part of her life early on, Huey didn’t grow up thinking about records or long-term goals in the sport. In high school, she didn’t hit a single home run at the varsity level.

“None,” Huey said. “Then last year I hit two. And this year it just kind of jumped.”

The change didn’t happen all at once. It came through training, repetition, and time. While consistency eventually turned into production, even now Huey doesn’t describe herself through numbers.

“When I’m on the field, I’m just focused on what I need to work on,” she said. “I don’t really think about the outside stuff.”

From the outside, the jump looks sudden. But for her coach, Lacey Craft, it was something building over time.

“She put her head down and did the work,” Coach Craft said. “When players focus on that instead of the outcome, they usually end up achieving more.”

On the field, Huey brings a different energy. She’s louder, more expressive, surrounded by people and

the rhythm of the game. That presence is something her teammates notice beyond the statistics.

“She’s a hard worker,” teammate Dominique Garcia said. “She would be a player you look up to if you want to hit.”

Huey’s season is built more on routine than highlight moments. It’s grinding in the training room, at practice, at work and on homework.

“I come in around 9:30 on practice days,” Huey said. “Then we’re in practice for a few hours.”

Huey entered the game with 17 home runs. She didn’t know the record. Coaches chose not to tell her.

“They didn’t want me thinking about it,” Huey said.

After the game, everything changed.

“They told me after,” Huey said. “I had no idea.”

Her teammates reacted immediately — cheering, celebrating, some emotional in the moment.

“It was just crazy,” Huey said. “Everyone was so happy.”

At home, Huey’s family followed closely. Her mom, who tracks stats, had a sense the record was close. Huey sent them a photo of the ball after the game.

“They were proud,” Huey said.

Even after a record-breaking season, Huey doesn’t see herself differently.

“I try not to think about it too much,” Huey said. “When I’m playing, I just focus on what’s next.”

Huey will graduate this May with a communications degree. What comes next is still undecided, but her season already tells a story — one built on repetition, growth, and consistency rather than expectation.

And somewhere in that process, without realizing it, she made history.