Bethune-Cookman Softball Head Coach Laura Watten announced the addition of Abbey Cheek to the Wildcats coaching staff ahead of the 2023-24 athletic year on Friday, June 30. Cheek joins fellow assistant coach Kaci Vassallo, who joined the staff prior to the start of the 2023 season for the Maroon and Gold.
Cheek, a former standout student-athlete at the University of Kentucky, was the 2019 Schutt/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Player of the Year for the Wildcats, in addition to being tabbed Southeastern Conference (SEC) Player of the Year that very same season.
“I’m extremely excited to add Abbey [Cheek] to our coaching staff,” said Watten. “With her success and experience on both the collegiate and professional level, she’ll bring so much experience to this program. She will help us grow exponentially – offensively and defensively.”
The former third baseman registered 20 home runs in her senior season at Kentucky, en route to tallying 61 career home runs across four seasons. The Inman, South Carolina native would go on to set the Wildcats single-season program record in a number of categories which include on-base percentage (.602), slugging percentage (.902), total bases (138) and walks (64). In 2019, Cheek carried a .428 batting average across the campaign – the second-highest single-season mark in school history.
In all, she started every game in which she saw action for Kentucky – a total of 234 collegiate contests.
Other accolades for Cheek at Kentucky include currently holding the school record for career RBIs (202), runs scored (173), home runs (61), slugging percentage (.678) and total bases (454), in addition to placing herself in the top 10 of several other offensive categories for the Wildcats, respectfully.
Cheek graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Community and Leadership Development from the University of Kentucky in 2019. Multiple times she was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll throughout her four years in Lexington.
Upon graduation, she was taken 14th overall by the Chicago Bandits in the 2019 National Pro Fastpitch Draft.
With the Bandits, she picked up 2019 NPF Rookie of the Year accolades after turning in a .378 batting average that included nine home runs and 28 runs driven in. Defensively, she picked up 23 putouts and assisted on four double plays with a fielding average of .966 overall in the infield.
Cheek would play the 2020 campaign professionally in Japan for Hitachi, seeing time primarily as an offensive player. She collected the Hitachi Team Offense Award in her lone season playing for the squad.
Coming out of high school at Chapman High in her home state of South Carolina, Cheek lettered in three sports – softball, volleyball and basketball. She was selected to the all-state team three times, while also collecting SCHSL Region Player of the Year honors twice, as well as the HSSR Player of the Year award on three different occasions.
Amongst the coaching ranks, Cheek has served as an assistant coach at both Morehead State (2020) and Limestone (2022), respectively.
Currently, Cheek is playing for the USSSA Pride professional fastpitch team.
“I tell you what…she just matches the work ethic and passion we have here at Bethune-Cookman University,” continued Watten. “Abbey [Cheek] started every game throughout her career. EVERY. GAME. That shows the level of trust her coaching staff had in her as a student-athlete, and the level of commitment and dedication for the sport that I know she’s adding to our staff at BCU as well.”
