Inside Pitch: 2025 Extra Elite 100 C/IF Emma Knight… Sacrifices Are A “Big Part of Who I Am… & I’m Great with That”

Texas Bombers Gold-Crabtree’s Emma Knight, #15 in the 2025 Extra Elite 100, is blogging about her softball adventures for Extra Inning Softball this season.

She helped Impact Gold National 07-Smith to a 3^rd place finish at the 2017 PGF 10U Premier Nationals and to the 2018 PGF 10U Premier national title in 2018. Her consistently exceptional play in big-game situations is a big reason why the C/1B/3B is considered one of the top 2025 prospects in the nation.

Click HERE to see Emma Knight’s Extra Star Power feature!

Emma took time out to write about “sacrifices”… and how they’re worth all worth it (and why)…

*****

“Sacrifice” is a word I feel everyone in the softball world hears.

I hear it from my parents all the time and, to be honest, sometimes I wonder will it be worth it? Missing so many birthday parties, school-related events, etc., for softball practices, tournaments, or even working on your own.

Let’s be honest… sometimes it really sucks!

All I tell myself anymore is, “In the end, it will absolutely be worth it!” You can’t just look at the negatives of not being able to do the fun things, you also have to look at hanging with your awesome teammates or having those awesome memories.

You can even look at the future. Say you get the chance to play college softball, can’t you just imagine the fun you could have? I’m not even there and that’s all I think about!

I know missing things doesn’t help to make you the most popular kid at school. I go to a fairly small 3A school in Texas and a lot of the time I feel like I don’t fit in. I don’t really have anyone to relate to. I have friends, but no one who really does all the things I do.

Going out of town every weekend to another tournament, missing events because “I have to hit,” all the things that have to come first in my life… most kids at my school just do not understand. But that’s OK: I know that these things are all simply part of the process of me getting to where I want to go.

Even with the negatives that come with missing out on things, I can honestly say that I have never considered doing things any differently. My softball routine is such a part of my life now that I can’t imagine things being any other way. And I wouldn’t want them to be!

I like that even after all of the thousands and thousands of balls I’ve hit in my cage, I still find myself sitting in class looking forward to crushing some balls later.

I actually like the feeling of being sore on a Monday after playing eight games over the past weekend and not getting home till midnight.

I don’t even mind that most of my classmates have never seen my legs when they weren’t beat up and bruised!

All of this stuff is a big part of who I am… And I’m great with that.

— Emma Knight #14