When Sam Landry is on the field, she’s seeing and sending signs – but not the kind that would be expected for a pitcher.
The Volts pitcher utilizes American Sign Language to communicate with her family in the stands and her teammates on the field.
In 4th grade, Landry had a classmate who communicated solely with ASL, and she began picking up the language. Then in high school, it was offered as a foreign language option, and she continued learning to speak with those who are deaf and hard-of-hearing.
She doesn’t consider herself fluent, but still uses it in her day-to-day life as a softball player. She’s taught her parents some ASL and signs to them in the stands. Landry also taught her Oklahoma Softball teammates signs to express “good job” and other phrases of encouragement to use at practice and in games.
Savanna Collins is the Senior Reporter at Athletes Unlimited. You can follow her on Twitter @savannaecollins.
