Great athletic feats captured on video will never get old, which is why you might watch this outstanding high school softball highlight from Utah for a long time. Bear River centerfielder Olivia Taylor leapt over a fence on Saturday to rob a home run in a play you need to see to believe.
Sam Farnsworth, a sports anchor at KSL in Salt Lake City, captured some spectacular footage of the catch and shared it online on Saturday. Positioned in the outfield, the camera catches Taylor leaping backward over a fence, somehow not only coming up with the catch but holding on to the ball while she tumbles to the ground.
CATCH OF THE YEAR!!! Watch Bear River Center Fielder Olivia Taylor going airborne, clearing the fence to make this catch in the @UHSAAinfo State Championship game. @KSLSports l @BRHSinfo l @BearRiverCoach pic.twitter.com/9aw1f1Fhu5
— Sam Farnsworth (@Samsworth_KSL) May 22, 2021
The outfield fence isn’t a more traditional chain link, which is a good thing because it didn’t get in the way of Taylor as she leapt back to make the grab. Somehow her gloved arm never quite hit the ground as she tumbled over, either. Just all around spectacular.
The more you watch the play, it really puts into focus just how impressive the grab is. Taylor was already up against the fence before she jumped, planting her feet before the fence and leaping back to track the ball and make the catch. She lands a full six feet or so behind the fence, stealing a clear home run with an athletic play not many can make on any level, let alone in a high school championship game.