U.S. OLYMPIC FESTIVAL : LOS ANGELES--1991 : ATHLETES TO WATCH : Among 3,000 Competitors, Some Will Stand Out

MICHELE GRANGER

Softball

Placentia’s Michele Granger can throw a softball 70 m.p.h., strike out 21 batters in a seven-inning game and lead the United States to a gold medal in the 1987 Pan American Games, but she can’t help her husband, John Poulas, pass the bar exam in three weeks.

“He’s too high-strung for me to help him,” Granger said. “I can give him a Diet Coke once in a while but that’s about it.”

While Poulas is buried in the books, his wife will be pitching for the Whittier Raiders, representing the West, in the softball portion of the Festival at Hjelte Park in Encino.

Since minimizing the effects of an inflammatory condition in her left (throwing) hand that forced her to redshirt at California in 1989, Granger has led the NCAA in strikeouts the past two seasons, with 327 and 463, respectively.