Throughout the spring, The Times will interview high school seniors whose athletic careers were cut short by the coronavirus outbreak.

Name: Ava Justman

School: Chatsworth

Sport: Softball, pitcher


Key stats: 5-3, 1.91 ERA, 83 strikeouts in 58 2/3 innings. Helped Chatsworth win City championship in 2018 as a sophomore.

Fall plans: Will attend University of Wisconsin.

On the moment she learned her season had been canceled:

“I was at home. I just finished pitching and I saw on Twitter how people were saying the season was going to be canceled. I was like, ‘What?’ Then the coach texted us. I was like, ‘Wow.’ I didn’t even know how to feel. I wasn’t sad at first because it was hard for me to process. It didn’t feel real, but now it’s taken a huge toll on me.”


How the absence of sports has affected her:

“It’s very different. It’s weird not being around my team every single day. I wish I could be practicing.”

How she stays in shape:

“I pitch four times a week and lift weights at home and run.”

What she misses most:

“The feeling of winning and competition and bonding with teammates.”

On her focus:

“When I’m pitching, it’s tunnel vision. I can’t even hear my own teammates cheering for me because I’m so dialed in.”


On her long-distance choice of college:

“I love it there. It feels like a different kind of home. I feel very welcomed.”

Where she sees herself in 10 years:

“I want to be an FBI agent, but also would like to be running my own business.”

Video interviews of each athlete can be found at latimes.com/sports/highschool.