Facial surgeries have not deterred high school softball pitcher Teagan Gerhart

Norco High's softball team was at a restaurant, and the waitress thought she'd play a little game of her own. So she went around the table, guessing each girl's position. When she got to Teagan Gerhart, she guessed right -- for the wrong reason.

"You must be the pitcher," the woman said. "It looks like you took a line drive to the face." The remark led to an awkward moment, which Gerhart handled with maturity beyond her years. She laughed it off, congratulated the server on her guess, and calmly revealed that the scars on her face weren't from playing softball.

Gerhart, the ace for the The Times' top-ranked team in the Southland, bares the remnants from 17 surgeries to correct a congenital birthmark and cleft palate. More might be done, she explains, were she willing to take more time away from the field. But she's not.

Read More:http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-gerhart-softball21-2009may21,0,602608.story