The daughter of a pair of Washington State University graduates is still disappointed her parents’ alma mater does not have a softball program. That commitment would have been simple.
Instead, Crimson Rice will travel more than 2,600 miles across the country to play collegiately at Stony Brook University on Long Island in New York.
“I am going about as far as I can possibly go from home,” said Rice, who lives in Spokane, Wash., and is the only child of Luke and Jaime Rice, both former Division I athletes at Washington State. Her first name is a tribute to one of the school’s official colors.
“(Stony Brook) saw me at the IDT tournament. It was never really a school I was emailing or pursuing. We were playing a New Jersey team that had a Stony Brook signee.”
Rice left an impression. So much so her travel ball coach with Washington Angels Premier, Bob Benson, was approached to discuss the then sophomore. That started the conversation that led to an official visit that left Rice thoroughly impressed.
“I got to meet the girls and talk with the coaching staff,” she recalled. “I got to explore Long Island. I had been to New York City a couple of times but Stony Brook is not in the city. It was a whole different ball game. It was in a rural area. It was just beautiful. I was offered on the visit.”
Rice realizes now she could have accepted on the spot but deferred to some family discussion time.
“I knew after the meeting that this was home,” she continued. “I called the next day and committed.”
Rice envisions a playing career on the East Coast could then lead to business opportunities on the West Coast after she secures a degree in Business Management.
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