9 hours ago
Genes give Portie her athletic prowess, but work to compete is all her
Sam Houston junior two-sport star Aubrey Portie is the American Press Female Athlete of the Year. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
A s a daughter of Division I athletes, athleticism courses through Aubrey Portie's blood.
There was added pressure for her to succeed that others didn't have. Still, she channeled their knowledge to hone her abilities to excel as a multi-sport athlete, become a state champion and this year's American Press Female Athlete of the Year.
'It's a tough area to be in sometimes because, if I'm not succeeding well, then they know like what I'm doing wrong or what I need to fix,' Portie said. 'It's just tough because they are so hard on me because they know how good I can be, but I really appreciate them.
'I'm glad that they know what they're talking about to help me grow and be better at the sport that I play.'
The Sam Houston junior shortstop helped lead the Broncos to their first state championship since 2015. As a powerful 5-foot-10 outside hitter, Portie and the Broncos reached the volleyball semifinals for the first time since 2009.
'It was pretty awesome to do that in both,' Portie said. 'That was definitely a different experience for volleyball because we made it to state my sophomore year, but it was not really anything the same as this past year.
'It was just a great learning experience, and it was just something that I was really looking forward to and that we worked for all season.'
Portie's mother, Sarah (Everingham) Portie, was a four-time all-Southland Conference softball infielder (1994, '95, '97, '98) and coached the Barbe High softball program for two decades. Her father, Jarrod Portie, was an all-district baseball and football player at Jennings High School and went on to pitch for McNeese State from 1998 to 2001. He helped lead Jennings to the Class 3A baseball semifinals in 1996 and 1997.
'My dad is my hitting coach,' Portie said. 'I do hit a lot on my own, but there are days that I ask them to hit with me. '(Mom) helps with my hitting, too. She has obviously played it a while and coached it, so she knows the little things. Her being the one who travels with me to all my tournaments, she gives me some pointers and helps me out through it all.'
With a brother, Riggins, a year younger than her, Portie said she always had someone to compete against. When she was younger, she played on the same youth baseball team as her brother, and eventually moved to softball.
In her second season as a starter on the high school level, Portie was part of one of the most feared lineups in the state. The Broncos combined for 57 home runs and scored 357 runs on their way to the Non-select Division I state championship and a 30-2 record. Portie accounted for 14 of those home runs while batting .519 with eight doubles, two triples, 48 RBIs, 55 runs and 12 stolen bases. She had a .628 on-base percentage with four strikeouts in 81 at-bats. She earned all-district first team, Class 5A all-state honorable mention and American Press All-Southwest Big School honors.
'I had a year underneath my belt,' Portie said. 'I knew what I was going into, so it wasn't anything really new to me.'
In junior high, she added three sports, including volleyball. 'I just grew up in the world of softball because of my parents,' Portie said. 'My dad played baseball, so I just grew up around that sport. But volleyball was just a random thing.
'One day, going into middle school, I was like, 'I think I want to try out for volleyball.' I didn't even know how many people were on the court at a time or any of the rules, but I made the team and started playing volleyball since then.'
On the volleyball court, Portie earned co-district MVP honors and played in the Louisiana Volleyball Coaches Association Top 100 Player Showcase for a second consecutive season. She was ninth in the state with 466 kills in addition to 80 blocks 68 aces, 505 digs and 59 assists for the 39-7 Broncos.
'I did a lot of extra work,' Portie said. 'I did a lot of jump training with Barry Painter, and I feel like that has helped me grow as an athlete.
'My freshman year, I was not 5-10. I was definitely more like 5-5, 5-8, so just growing a couple of extra inches and learning your body. I would just say that I was more aware and just an overall better athlete.'
