It doesn't matter how many times she delivers in the clutch.

When people speak to her for the first time, they still want answers to the same old questions:

“Are you really Kristie Fox's sister? What's that like?”

Kellie said she doesn't mind the questions much anymore. She is proud of what Kristie has accomplished as a former two-time national champion and All-American at the University of Arizona who plays softball professionally for the Chicago Bandits of the National Pro Fastpitch League.

“Kristie has worked really hard for what she's done,” said Kellie, 16. “She's an amazing softball player, and I just want to follow in her footsteps.”

Kellie is a loving sister, but she is also a competitor. She dreams of the day when her experiences – not her older sister's – will be what people ask her about.

That day may come soon enough.

Kellie, a shortstop who will be a junior at Mt. Carmel High, has played an integral part in the Sundevils' two-year run as San Diego Section Division II champions. In two seasons, she has a .400 batting average and .712 slugging percentage, capturing interest from the nation's top collegiate softball programs.

After Mt. Carmel won its second straight title in May with a 6-1 victory over Scripps Ranch, Kellie figured she couldn't ask for a better first half to her high school career.

That changed in early June when her father, Mike Fox, an SAIC project manager, checked his office e-mail. There, waiting for Kellie, was the ultimate cherry on top.

“It said, 'Congratulations. You have been selected to participate in the Under Armour All-American Game,'” Mike Fox said. “It was a big thing for Kellie. She got to see that her hard work was paying off. She still might be referred to as 'Kristie's sister,' but she is definitely beginning to make a name for herself.”

Kellie was one of 30 high school players nationwide to be named an Under Armour All-American. This month, she traveled to Orlando, Fla., to partake in a weekend hosted by the sports apparel manufacturer, culminating with the Under Armour All-American Softball Game at Disney's Wide World of Sports.

“It was such an honor,” Kellie said. “It was an amazing, unbelievable experience.”

Among the highlights was a hotel room filled with Under Armour gear, a day at Disney World, a dinner at Epcot Center and the experience of being coached in the All-American Game by three-time Olympic gold medalist Leah O'Brien-Amico.

Kellie flew to Florida with her mother, Jennifer Fox, and younger brother Cory. Mike Fox couldn't make the trip because of prior commitments. The game was televised nationally on ESPNU, so he was able to watch his daughter play four innings, two at shortstop and two at second base. Kellie walked in both her plate appearances.

Ruby Chavez, Kellie's coach at Mt. Carmel, subscribed to the cable channel so she could watch, too.

“I wouldn't have missed it,” Chavez said. “She's just an outstanding individual. That's the thing that stands out most about Kellie. She's a great kid, and she is really coachable. Sometimes you get athletes who have talent, and it's not so, but Kellie is going to be really successful because of the type of person she is.”

Kellie returned from her weekend in Florida with a new wardrobe, but the same positive attitude. She wears a lot more Under Armour gear than she used to.

With a few more trips like this, perhaps questions of “What's it like to be Kristie's sister?” will change, too.

 Michael Gehlken is a Union-Tribune intern: michael.gehlken@uniontrib.com