First off, I hope everyone is healthy and safe during this pandemic. This unprecedented time has allowed me to take time to reflect on my softball career. I wouldn't have been able to accomplish all that I have without the love and support from all of the people around me. To my parents, coaches, teammates, friends, and fans: THANK YOU!
The weekend before Spring Break, we started conference play against Middle Tennessee. Little did I know that those three wins would be the last three I would get in a WKU uniform. A little later that week, we were at a Dallas Mavericks game when everyone found out that the NBA had suspended their season. I knew as soon as we got that notification that other sports would soon suspend theirs.
On March 13, we were practicing at North Texas for our upcoming series. After practice, we always end in a circle in the middle of the field. Coach Tudor then told us that the NCAA had suspended all championships. I was in shock. I was in denial. I stood in that circle and just held onto my teammates and cried. I cried for myself, for my other seniors, for every single girl in that circle who had to face something that other people will never understand or comprehend.
No one had answers, no one was able to say anything to make any sense, so we did what made sense to us the most. We prayed. My season ended the exact same way we started every single game, in a prayer. We always pray for protection. In that moment, we needed protection from the virus, but also for our hearts and minds.
After we left that circle, I took my time leaving the field. It wasn't the same because we weren't at home, but a softball field had been my home for the past sixteen years. It was the place I could go to think, to not think, to get my frustration out, and to find peace.
I sat on the bench at North Texas and thought about everyone who played a part in getting me to that point. I sat there and took my cleats off for the very last time and thought about the little girl who grew up on the softball field that just wanted to have fun with her friends. In the end, that is what I did every single day. I went out and played a game with my friends. The game sped up, the crowds were bigger, but ultimately I got to do what I loved for sixteen years.
The NCAA voted on March 30 to grant an extra year of eligibility to all spring sport athletes. I had eighteen days before that to decide what I wanted to do with the next year of my life. Would I play another year of softball, or would I graduate and move on to the next chapter?
I am lucky to get another year of eligibility. I know that other athletes were not able to get that opportunity, but I ultimately decided that my next steps would not be in cleats. I have an internship with Ernst and Young this upcoming summer and am due to graduate in December with my Master's in Accountancy. After that, I hope to start my career in Nashville and watch my teammates play the sport we all love from the stands.
My Story Collection
My Story: Women's Basketball's Sandra Skinner (March 26)
My Story: Men's Basketball's Taveion Hollingsworth (April 1)
My Story: Baseball's Ray Zuberer III (April 8)
My Story: Women's Golf's Mary Joiner (April 15)
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