CHICAGO – In its 38th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Hailey Maestretti of Lutheran High School is the 2022-23 Gatorade Colorado Softball Player of the Year. Maestretti is the first Gatorade Colorado Softball Player of the Year to be chosen from Lutheran High School.
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Maestretti as Colorado’s best high school softball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year award to be announced in June, Maestretti joins an elite alumni association of state award-winners in 12 sports, including Jordyn Bahl (2020-21, Papillion-La Vista High School, Neb.), Megan Faraimo (2017-18, Cathedral Catholic High School, Calif.), Rachel Garcia (2014-15, Highland High School, Calif.) and Cat Osterman (2000-01, Cypress Springs High School, Texas).
The 5-foot-9 junior left-handed pitcher led the Lions to a 28-1 record and the 4A state championship this past season. Maestretti led the state in strikeouts with 271 while finishing with a 27-1 record and a 0.94 ERA in 148.3 innings pitched. The 4A Player of the Year, she also batted .506 with 43 RBI and nine home runs.
Maestretti has volunteered locally on behalf of the Food Bank of the Rockies and Treasure House of Hope, a program that provides assistance for the unhoused along with domestic violence or human-trafficking victims or others in need. She also has donated her time wrapping gifts for needy families during the holiday season and walking dogs for the elderly. “Maestretti was consistently a powerhouse and made it extremely difficult to put the bat to the ball with the speed and movement she has,” said Pueblo South High School head coach Tana Strasia. “She had a phenomenal season and outmatched all other pitchers in Colorado.”
Maestretti has maintained a 3.0 GPA in the classroom. She has made a verbal commitment to play softball on scholarship at the University of Utah beginning in the fall of 2024.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.
Maestretti joins recent Gatorade Colorado Softball Players of the Year Nikki McGaffin (2021-22, Fossil Ridge High School), Katie Dack-Howell (2020-21, Rock Canyon High School), and Laurin Krings (2019-20 & 2018-19, Loveland High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
Being a Gatorade Player of the Year means paying it forward for the next generation. Through Gatorade’s Play it Forward initiative, every Player of the Year receives a grant to give to one of Gatorade’s social impact partners, supporting Gatorade’s ambition to fuel the future of sport. To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have totaled more than $3.5 million across more than 1,300 organizations.
For nearly 40 years, Gatorade has honored high school athletes at the top of their game as teammates, supporting their communities and achieving academic success. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes and community leaders, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport.
To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on Facebook at facebook.com/GatoradePOY, Instagram at instagram.com/Gatorade and Twitter at twitter.com/Gatorade.