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ABOUT
Lizzie Kern is a 2024 who plays up the PA Strikers 16U Premier – Garber team. Basically, she is a 13-year-old playing with girls who have already turned 16 which you see often in softball, but with Lizzie it’s a little different because, in addition to playing two years older than her eligible age, she is also a competitive gymnast who trains for national events not only in softball, but for gymnastics as well.
And she’s 5-foot-10 which is uncharacteristic of a gymnast, but fabulous for the D1 college softball player that she has her sights on becoming. Softball players like Lizzie know the grind: it takes a lot of work, dedication, sacrifice and time to train and play competitively on a club team with a national schedule – no doubt.
But try throwing in a second sport that also requires the same dedication to training and a similar nationally challenging schedule!
Say hello to a day in the life of Lizzie, who plays first base and outfield for the PA Strikers 16U Premier Garber team that finished 5th at the JO Cup 14U National Tournament last summer and is also a Level 7 gymnast who competes nationally as a member of the Greater Brandywine Gymcats, based just outside of West Chester, Pennsylvania.
Lizzie started doing gymnastics at her local YMCA when she was just three-years-old. She immediately loved it and eventually earned a spot on a Level 3 competitive team just before she turned eight.
The more she trained and competed, the higher her level of competition increased and—while she was clearly on the fast track from a competitive gymnastics stand point—she soon entered her love of another sport as well… softball.
In order to keep her well-rounded and balanced, and not just focused on one sport at such a young age, her mom Christine (who played softball in college), took Lizzie to try out for the PA Strikers 10U travel team.
Lizzie had just turned nine at the time but made the travel softball team and it wasn’t long before she found herself juggling two very demanding sports with intense training requirements and extensive travel schedules.
The director at her gym had a daughter who played travel softball, so she understood when there were conflicts. Staying on top in both competitive sports, however, still required quite a rigorous schedule, but was a challenge that Lizzie and her family happily accepted and almost five years later has somehow figured out a successful way to manage it (at least so far!).
It should be noted that Lizzie finished her competitive 2019 summer softball season with a batting average of .385, an on-base percentage of .440 and hit an impressive 69 percent of her balls to the outfield. She runs a legit 2.9 home to first (recorded using a Speed Freelap Laser) and has a vertical jump of 23 inches.
Playing up with her older PA Strikers team in national events such as the Atlanta Legacy Showcase, Boulder IDT, JO Cup and the D9 Fall Classic—where this past fall she batted .500— has only fueled the fire of this super-athletic 13-year-oldwho is determined to play college softball when her time comes and is using gymnastics to help her reach that goal.
With an impressive level of maturity and a fun sense of humor, here’s what Lizzie had to say when we asked her about playing two very competitive sports at the same time and how she is able to pull it all off…
EXTRA STAR POWER
Name:Â Elizabeth (Lizzie) Kern
Hometown/State:Â Downingtown, PennsylvaniaÂ
Grad Year:Â Â 2024
Positions:Â OF/1BÂ
Club Team:Â PA Strikers 16U Premier – Garber
School (City/ST):Â Downingtown Middle School (Downingtown, PA)
GPA:Â 3.9
Honors/Accomplishments: National Junior Honor Society Â
Other Sports? Gymnastics and snowboarding/skiing
Preferred College Major:Â Marine Biology or Biology
You’ve got a lot on your plate! What’s your secret to making your demanding schedule work:Â
I am so thankful that both of my coaches (softball and gymnastics) are understanding and always do their best to work with me if there is ever a scheduling conflict. Neither has ever put pressure on me to choose one sport over the other – and I feel very fortunate to both of them for that. I think they both see the value that comes with being a multi-sport athlete –  and so they do their best to be flexible when they can.
When it comes down to it, my goal is to play Division I softball – so if there is a conflict during the Fall, I go to softball because the practices are outside and being on the dirt with my team is super important. During the winter, I am proactive about getting our softball practice plan ahead of time from the coaches. If the plan is to hit, I go to softball (unless it is a meet week, then I have to go to gymnastics). If the softball practice plan is conditioning, I usually go to gymnastics because the conditioning there is quite intense.
Summer gets tricky, but thanks to my supportive parents we make it work. Last summer, I competed in a national gymnastics event in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. As soon as the event ended, we (my family and I) drove straight from Wisconsin to Cleveland, Ohio where I joined my Strikers team at the D1 Fastpitch/Ohio Outlaws Summer Showcase. This summer, I qualified to compete at a national gymnastics event in Long Beach, California, scheduled for late June but it was cancelled because of the pandemic making our travel plans for the summer a lot less challenging.
What is a typical day for you during the school year?Â
During school softball season, a typical day means I am up at 6:15am, off to school and in class until 2:40 pm. Softball practice or games are every day after school until 5:30 pm – so I am used to eating dinner in the car and changing my clothes while my mom drives. When I get to the gym, I train each night until about 8:30 pm and then when I get home; I eat dinner #2, shower and finish any homework I didn’t get done in school. It’s lights out for me by 10:30 pm at the latest each night.
What skills do you think are most important to have when managing a schedule like this?
Obviously, time management skills are really important when you play two sports at a national level. People who read this may think it’s crazy to be so busy at such a young age, but I love what I do and I love my busy schedule. It’s also about prioritizing. I’m a high honor roll student and a member of the National Junior Honor Society, so academics are just as important to me as training. And for the record, I also find time to hang out with friends – and in the winter when things aren’t as busy with softball, I love to ski and snowboard.
How has being a gymnast helped your softball game?Â
Gymnastics workouts are tough but they are the best. We do lots of sprints, push-ups, pull-ups, squats, splits, planks, wall sits… you name it. Sometimes we work on abs and our core for a full hour—it can be brutal! But I feel like the training I get from gymnastics makes me an even better softball player. I have developed lots of muscle and my whole body is strong and flexible. The conditioning aspect of gymnastics is similar to the proper conditioning for softball so it absolutely helps with my endurance and speed. It also keeps me at a lower risk from injuries than those who don’t play multiple sports may be more susceptible to. Being a gymnast from such an early age, I’ve also learned to take care of my body in other important ways. I eat like an athlete and fuel my body with lots of proteins, Vitamin D and of course –  plenty of fruits and vegetables (sushi and raspberries are my favorites).
*** Scroll down to read more about Lizzie including what she feels makes her unique and what her biggest obstacle in life has been… interestingly, they both have to do with the same thing!