UW softball pitcher Danielle Lawrie is a hit on and off the diamond

First, you should hear about The Punch. To understand the competitive ferocity that makes Danielle Lawrie a nearly unhittable pitcher, go back to when she was 9 years old and protecting her little brother, Brett.

At the community pool one day, Brett swam toward his sister, crying, complaining that some boys were pestering him. Danielle asked who, Brett pointed to the ring leader, and she walked over to her brother's tormentor and punched him in the face. All swimmers had to clear the pool because of the blood.

"It's great you're sticking up for your brother," her father told her that day, "but we need to talk about how to channel your emotions."

Thirteen years later, Danielle laughs at the memory, bats her blue eyes and says, "Don't worry. I haven't punched anyone since, and I don't plan on it."

Her brother doesn't need the help anymore. He's a 6-foot, 200-pound catcher whom new Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik drafted in the first round for the Milwaukee Brewers a year ago.

Besides, Danielle is too busy overpowering hitters now. After missing all of last season to play for the Canadian national team in the Olympics, she has resumed her dominance of the college game this season and led the Washington softball team to a 39-9 record and a top-five national ranking.

The Huskies, who play Stanford at home today and California on Friday and Saturday to end the regular season, have a chance to win their first Pac-10 title in nine years. As good as Lawrie has been, the Huskies are national championship contenders because a complete team now supports her, a group that developed through the struggles of last season. They're deep and versatile and capable of winning even on the rare days their star doesn't pitch well.

The girl who once defended her bro so fiercely has backup these days. Lawrie offers that second baseman Ashley Charters, who is hitting .462 (seventh in the nation) after being forced to redshirt last season because of a torn labrum in her right hip, should be the team's most valuable player. Senior Ashlyn Watson has developed into a feared hitter. Freshman Kimi Pohlman has established herself as potentially the next Huskies softball superstar.

Beyond those headliners, the team is an intriguing mix of veterans (catcher Alicia Blake, outfielder Lauren Greer) and gifted underclassmen (sophomore Morgan Stuart, freshman Niki Williams). Life is so good that, in the past month, the Huskies had the great fortune of adding another elite player for the stretch run, transfer Jenn Salling, an All-American transfer who played with Lawrie on Team Canada.

"It's a fun group of young women who want to be the best," coach Heather Tarr says. "We have a motto: Any Given Nine. We don't usually use the same lineup every game. We have a lot of good players, and they've all bought into the fact that any combination can help us win. We're a big-picture team. They get it."

Lawrie has matured along with her team. As a sophomore in 2007, she was named an All-American after finishing 31-13 with a 1.54 earned-run average and a school-record 457 strikeouts. This season, she's 30-5 with a 0.76 ERA, and if the Huskies fare well in the postseason, she'll set the school record for strikeouts in a season for the third time.

For certain, she learned a lot from her Olympic experience. But it wasn't the kind of education she hoped to receive. Lawrie remains disappointed that she only made three appearances and pitched 12 innings in Beijing. She wanted to pitch more, but Canada coach Lori Sippel chose to use veteran Lauren Bay heavily.

So, for the first time since quitting baseball as a kid because she was snubbed from an all-star team, Lawrie had to deal with a coach dismissing her talent. She responded in a respectful manner, but the lack of playing time still bothers her.

"I had some rough times," said Lawrie, who was named a finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award on Wednesday. "I expected more. A lot of people did. But she went with Bay, and it was a good choice. She's an older veteran, but at the same time, it was sad to see. I felt like I could contribute, but I didn't get the chance.

"I can't ever criticize and say that it's wrong, but it was tough for me. I put in four years on the national team, and I felt like maybe there was something I could've done more to prove I deserved a little more of a chance."

Instead of pouting, however, Lawrie took pride in cheering on her teammates. Her enthusiasm has carried over to this season. She plays the game with much more spirit, screaming to celebrate her teammates' successes and displaying her joy to compete while in the circle.

And in February, she had an opportunity to release some frustration against Sippel in an appropriate manner. Sippel is the associate head coach for Nebraska, and when the Cornhuskers played the Huskies, Lawrie struck out 15 batters in a splendid one-hit performance and clubbed a home run. Washington won 6-0.

"I think Danielle pretty much made a statement right there," said her father, Russ Lawrie.

Now, there's only one thing on her mind: winning a national championship. Lawrie, who is from Langley, B.C., wanted to be a Dawg ever since she attended a game as a seventh-grader. She came away so enamored that she drew a Husky on a poster and hung it on her door. Two years ago, she helped them earn a berth in the Women's College World Series, but she remembers the way that season ended. The Huskies lost 8-1 to Arizona and finished tied for third. They were close to a national title, but not good enough.

"I remember sitting there and thinking, 'I never want this feeling to come again,' " Lawrie said. "I remember being so upset, wondering that maybe I could've done something better. I kept asking myself, 'What could I have done?' It took a toll on me."

It's almost time for the postseason again. The NCAA Regionals begin next week. Lawrie will get to test how much she's grown mentally.

"She's pretty dynamic," Tarr said. "She's so good that even some of the strikes she throws, people can't hit. And the tougher it gets, the better she gets. Some pitchers break down at that point. But when some teams think they have a rally going, she's going to dig in and stare you down and go."

She can throw a curveball, screwball, rise ball and changeup with equal effectiveness. Her pitches move almost as much as nervous hitters do when they step into the batter's box to face her. The only time Danielle Lawrie was more dangerous, she punched that boy in the face.

"She's fiercely protective of the people that she loves," Russ says.

And she loves her team. The competition has been forewarned.

Jerry Brewer: 206-464-2277 or jbrewer@seattletimes.com. For more columns, visit seattletimes.com/sports