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Recruiting Process by Katie C

What's on your mind?

by NumeroUno » Sun Oct 09, 2022 8:24 am

Crossing Home Plate with Kate: Knowing Yourself

Going through the stress that is the recruiting process is something that still gives me anxiety to this day.

I remember it all too well. At a time when “the year” to get recruited was your Junior Year in high school, I was nothing more than a ball of nerves. So much so that when I got to play in the Colorado Fireworks tournament, I could hardly get out of the hotel initially for fear of not being offered a college softball scholarship.

There were SO many schools there coming to watch the best teams play in the country. I had no idea how I was to stand out amongst the best of the best. Heck even stand out amongst my talented teammates.

As I went through the tournament I became more comfortable. I tried to block out what I could see was going on in the stands. Once I was between the lines it was all business. I controlled what I could and tried to perform the best that I could.

I knew if I wasn’t satisfied with my performance though I couldn’t show it. My only “safe spaces” were the car my parents drove me in to get to the tournament and the hotel room. That’s it.

My head coaches wanted us to do anything and everything as a team including going to and from the games together in a van they drove us in. Unfortunately, this could turn into incredibly long days of waiting around for our coaches to finish up talking with the colleges that showed interest.

At the end of those days I just knew I had to somehow keep it together mentally. In other words, I couldn’t question “how good” I was doing. Even though I wanted more than anything to have the schools I was interested in show that same interest in me, I didn’t let that consume my thoughts. I let my effort, attitude, and God-given talents shine through to the best of my ability. Therefore, I took everything in stride.

Once the tournament was over, there were schools lining up to talk to my teammates and I. New Mexico State was the first coach I spoke to. She was such a nice lady and had nothing but wonderful things to say. And then, the school that I knew I wanted to go to came up to me: Arizona State.

When first looking into colleges, I wanted to make sure that I could handle it academically and athletically. Arizona State seemed like the perfect balance for me. Sure I had dreamt of going to schools like UCLA and Arizona, but when it came down to make a decision, I knew that I belonged elsewhere. That was in Tempe.

Coach Linda Wells, sat down with my family and I to explain the advantages of coming to ASU and where I could potentially fit into the program. As much as I tried to direct my attention on what she was saying, I could only fixate on what she was (or wasn’t) going to offer me in terms of a scholarship.

Then, it happened. She offered me a full ride and I just kept saying “YES! YES! I ACCEPT!”, while my dad wanted to make sure he understood what she was offering. Only moments later, I rushed to tell my teammates that were also going to Arizona State and at Arizona State already. They hugged me with all their might. It was a pretty awesome day…and experience.

To the players going through this process, try to stay calm and have faith that your time will come. Know that you don’t have to play perfect in front of these coaches. In fact, some of these coaches want to see you fail. They want to see how you pick yourself up in times of adversity as well as your teammates.

Trust that you are top-notch and can offer so much to any program. Be the change you wish to see in a program. There’s nothing stopping you from going to a school and helping it get to the top…sometimes that is more rewarding than going to a school that is already established.

Until next time,

Katie C.

Enjoy the Journey
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NumeroUno
 
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Joined: Mon Dec 17, 2007 1:50 pm

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