Yelli Calvo Comes Full Circle With Gators Commitment
Anyone who saw Niayli “Yelli” Calvo play her first season of T-ball with the boys in Vacaville, California, may have assumed she wasn't interested in sticking with a diamond sport.
“From what my parents tell me, I used to sit in the outfield and just pick out the flowers,” Calvo said. “But then I eventually went into the rec league in Vacaville and started playing softball with girls my age. After a season, my dad realized I could hit better pitching so he put me in a program in a higher age division.”
Calvo never looked back, developing into one of the top 2027 infield recruits in the country and Prep Softball's No. 1 player in the class. She recently committed to Florida, fulfilling an early dream that took a few twists and turns.
Calvo grew up watching Florida and UCLA on television as the two perennial contenders battled for Women's College World Series appearances.
“Florida was where I wanted to go, because I used to watch Kelly Barnhill pitch, and I was like, ‘Wow. I want to go there,'” Calvo said. “But I didn't know if I'd ever be good enough to go there.”
Calvo eventually switched her No. 1 school to UCLA until she attended a camp at Arizona and “instantly fell in love and wanted to go there.”
But in 2023, Calvo visited Florida with some teammates and the Gators drew her back into the fold.
“I ended up really, really liking it, and I didn't want to leave,” said Calvo, who plays for Lady Magic Munoz. “Coach (Tim) Walton reminded me of my coach Ernie (Munoz), and I really like the way that Ernie coaches me. He knows if I can do better and is always ready to help you.”
Calvo attended a Florida camp in Colorado this past summer and it reaffirmed her love for the program.
“I felt like they were talking to me in a way that like I was already on their team, and how they would talk to their players. That made me feel super comfortable with them,” she said. “On my visit, it was the same thing, just super comforting. It just feels like home, and I don't know if I could see myself anywhere else.”
Calvo, who hit .710 with 18 doubles, 44 hits and 32 RBIs as a sophomore at Vanden High, prides herself on being a good teammate.
“There are some people that I've played with in the past that maybe our personalities don't align, but I still really care for them. I'm always trying to figure out a way to lift someone up if I know that they're feeling down,” she said. “I try to be as supportive as I can, because I know that this is such a hard sport, and I know that I get into my own moods when things aren't going the way that I want.”
Calvo has two younger brothers, ages 15 and 8, who she enjoys practicing with whenever she can.
“It's a very competitive household. My brother who is 15 and I usually work out together, or we hit together down the street from us,” she said. “We have hitting cages, so we'll go, and we'll hit together and be able to talk about certain things.”
Outside of softball, Calvo enjoys spending time with family and friends and tapping into her creative side.
“I like to do projects. I like to rearrange my room,” she said. “I am always taking things off my wall and redoing it or putting up something new.”
Calvo thought about majoring in forensic science in college, but is now thinking about pursuing a career in sports medicine.
“I think I'd like being able to work with other athletes and help them and stuff like that,” she said. “I think that is what I am leaning towards right now.”
