Grace White is a college senior who plays first base for Union University, a DII school in Jackson, Tennessee, and is majoring in Journalism. She is the Sports Editor for the Cardinal & Cream, the school’s student publication, and has a younger sister who plays in the Virginia Unity club organization.
In today’s Inside Pitch, Grace shares her thoughts on how her final season of college softball began–the “last first week” and the emotions and feelings that brought…
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On Jan. 8, 2023, I picked up my dorm key for the last time. I wasn’t ready to come back as I had been having a great time at home with my sisters and my dad, watching Survivor and going to high school basketball games.
Christmas break was the last true break I’ll have because once I graduate, I’ll start work, and most big girl jobs don’t give you a summer break and Christmas break like college does.
I’m not exactly excited about that part of the real world!
Starting Jan. 9, I was off to the races.
That morning, from 10 am to 12 noon, I had a staff meeting for my job in Union’s Wellness Center. From 12:30 to 1:30 pm, I had a meeting with the editorial staff for the Cardinal & Cream. I worked from 3 to 5 pm in the Wellness Center, and then I had a softball meeting from 6 to 7 pm.
So much for easing back into my routine!
Classes started on Tuesday, Jan. 10 and my morning began with work from 8 to 9 am. Then class from 9:25 to 12:05 am before weights for softball which takes anywhere from 40 to 50 minutes. My next class goes from 1:40 to 2:55 pm, so I have to grab lunch between weights and class.
From that class, I go straight to practice which starts at 3:45 pm and usually ends around 6 pm. The rest of the night is spent eating supper, doing any homework I have, and relaxing.
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are similar as far as practice goes. I don’t have class on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday this semester so that makes my week a lot more flexible. I have time to go hit extra with our coaches, and I get to sleep in on the days we don’t have early morning weights or conditioning.
The weather during the week started out really nice, but by Friday, it was freezing and had been raining. For some reason, our outfield isn’t draining as well as it used to, so we’ve had to use our soccer teams’ practice field for our practices several times. We’ve never had to do that before in the four years I’ve been at Union.
I guess there’s always room for change and new experiences.
Our first games will be February 3-5 at the Mardi Gras Invitational in Youngsville, Lousiana. That’s just two weeks from yesterday (Thursday, Jan. 19).
These three and a half weeks of practice that we have before that tournament are sort of like the calm before the storm. Sure, it’s hard having class and practice; however, once you add games to the mix, it gets more difficult, and time starts to fly by a whole lot faster. But even though it’s tiring, nothing compares to those naps on the late-night bus rides home, and the mornings that I get to drive up to Fesmire Fieldhouse for our home games.
This is definitely a sentimental time for me when I sit and think about what’s happening in my life right now, but it is also a time full of weariness.
Since August, I’ve found myself with a major case of “senioritis.” I’m tired of school, which I’ve been doing since I was three or four years old, and I’m practicing softball with the knowledge that this is my last season. I now have about four months to do everything I can to go out with a bang.
I feel pressure in this but also a sense of relief. Pressure because this is it, and relief because this is it. I don’t want to have any regrets after this final season, but at the same time, softball has been part of my life for about 16 years. That’s a long time, and honestly, I’m ready to move on, at least from the playing part of it.
I try to imagine what’s going to happen in two weeks at our first game and in four weeks at our first conference series. I just want to perform at my fullest potential. Even though it’s unrealistic, I want to be perfect.
One of my goals for this season is to play free and not dwell on the little things, but as the season gets closer, I’m struggling to accomplish this goal. I know what’s at stake, and I don’t want to let opportunity slip through my fingers.
I think I’d feel better if I could just see what’s going to happen, but even though that’s not realistic, I guess that’s part of the beauty of softball and sports and life in general. We never know exactly how things are going to turn out, so we just always have to do our best and try to make decisions that will be the best in the long run.
We’re writing the stories of our lives each day we’re alive and breathing. I’m excited to start the pages in my life about Union’s 2023 softball season. I pray that it’s everything I could’ve ever dreamed of and that God uses it to better me as an athlete and as a person.
— Grace White
