Without hesitation, Stigler’s Dally Engle came out swinging with the Lady Panthers’ fastpitch softball team. So far this season, she has crushed eight home runs and knocked in 20 RBIs just in her sophomore year.
With a 0.456 batting average, the five-foot-five catcher is arguably a force to be reckoned with, whether offensively or defensively.
“Dally is great behind the plate for us. She is one of the best catchers in Oklahoma,” said coach Tyler Guthrie. “She does a great job blocking, receiving, and controlling the opponents’ running game.”
Dally picked up her first bat when she was just four years old. In the beginning, she admitted it just looked liked fun. Fast forward to the future, it is more than just fun and games. It is her passion and it shows in every play she makes.
In addition to wearing the number 25 jersey for her home team, Dally also plays for a traveling team called the Demarini Aces, a national team out of Kansas City. When asked what she liked most about softball, Dally never hesitated.

“I love the challenge, competition, and playing with my friends.”
No matter what jersey Dally suits up in, the young star always gives 100 percent. She knows no different; it’s in her blood. Her mother, Ashley Engle, who also attended Stigler, was an All-Stater in slowpitch and furthered her softball career at Carl Albert State College. So, the apple doesn’t fall from the tree.
“I want to play at the college level,” said Dally. “At the highest level, my abilities will allow me to.”
It is evident that Dally’s family is her biggest supporter and without them, she wouldn’t be who she is today. But there is one family member that Dally speaks of specifically, her brother, Ace.
“I admire my brother. Ace he works harder than anyone I know,” she said.
In addition to eight home runs, Dally’s stats this fall include a .527 on-base percentage, 36 hits, 19 singles, eight doubles, one triple, and 31 runs. The number two hitter has helped the Lady Panthers clinch the number one spot in their district, and the season isn’t over yet.
“She is a competitive, tough, hard-working kid that leaves it all on the field every game,” said coach Guthrie. “A kid like her doesn’t come around often. I am blessed to be able to coach her this year and for two more years after this season.”
Although Dally eats, sleeps, and dreams about her future as a college athlete, for now, she is just enjoying every moment of being Dally Engle, a proud and loyal Lady Panther.
“I love being a Lady Panther because I grew up here,” she said. “I love the people and know everyone, and they know me.”