By: by Caroline Burleson
Weekly Release
Inside Owls Softball
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KENNESAW, Ga. - Since arriving on campus, each member of the Kennesaw State Owls softball 2012 senior class has witnessed firsthand several major changes to both the program and the athletic department as a whole. With their games at Bailey Park looming on Saturday when they host Mercer in a crucial Atlantic Sun Conference doubleheader, Mandi Burns, Jessica Cross, Brittany Moore and Lindsay Vollmer sat down to discuss their experiences both on and off the field.
Talk about the transformation in the program since you’ve been at Kennesaw State
Jessica Cross: “My first season (2008) was when we were still making the transition to Division I. I guess our main goal was kind of making those adaptations as far as our team and our program competing at that level. Compared to back then, we’re able to focus on winning our conference and going to the NCAA Tournament and being that number one team instead of just trying to get used to the new rules, the new competition and things like that.”
Brittany Moore: “The difference was my freshman year (2009), you wanted to win but there just wasn’t the drive to do so just because if you won, you couldn’t go anywhere. There was no possibility for us of making the A-Sun Tournament, the NCAA Tournament, things like that. You couldn’t do anything with it other than say ‘hey, we won.’ This season, there is that goal to reach the NCAA’s, to go to a regional at the Division I level for the first time. It’s something you can see actually happening and something to strive for. So I think that has just increased everyone’s drive to get better. When the possibilities for your program are endless, it’s easier to recruit talent to your program, and I think we have gotten more talented every year that I’ve been here.”
Mandi Burns: “My first season (2009), we were still in re-classification, so everyone’s attitude was more of a, ‘no one expects us to be good, so if we’re not, it’s ok,’ kind of thing. And then we started getting there. We weren’t super competitive our first year of eligibility in 2010, which was my sophomore year. Last year, we did pretty good. We didn’t do what we wanted to do at the A-Sun Tournament but we were a factor down the stretch.
“Now this year, we have so much more talent. We’re in first place right now. It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had at Kennesaw State, knowing that we’re being chased by the rest of the conference. It’s a feeling I’m so glad we got to experience, because the last three years have been kind of disappointing. There’s a chance we get to stay and do what the better teams in the country do, and that’s compete throughout the month of May and hopefully beyond. We could be the one’s on TV instead of going home and we watching. This year, it’s a great way to go out. Even if things end earlier than the should, it’s still been the best season I’ve had here in my four years.”
What are you looking forward to most on Senior Day?
Brittany: “Definitely sweeping (on Senior Day) the doubleheader and clinching at least a share of the conference title would be awesome. I’ve got a lot of family coming down to see me play college ball for the first time.”
Jessica, since your injury during your freshman season, how has this fifth year helped you?
Jessica: “During what was supposed to be my sophomore year, I fractured my shin. I have always been accident prone so it was nothing new to me. The situation kind of progressed and continued to deteriorate, as I had fractured that same shin before and just being on it and that constant pounding when I’m pitching and running, it just cracked one day, and it forced me to miss the rest of the season.
“While it was disappointing at the time, this fifth year has been a great experience. I have gotten to play with some very talented newcomers this season, players who will help us win the A-Sun Championship and be very competitive for years to come. It’s been nice to have that extra year to play with everyone and try to reach that goal.”
Lindsay, since transferring to Kennesaw State prior to the 2011 season, how have you become more comfortable on the field with your teammates? You seem to be an on-field leader, especially when you are catching.
Lindsay Vollmer: “Last year was a tough one for me both on and off the field having just transferred. This season, I have tried to relax and just go out and play. I got to know the girls and I feel comfortable. I think I am able to have that voice on the field because whereas before, I was the girl who just kind of showed up to practice and saw people on campus, I have now gotten to know the team a lot more and have been more a part of the team and have helped out.”
Brittany, how was the transition moving from Arizona to Georgia after high school?
Brittany: “All of the grass and the greenery freaked me out a little bit. Not going to lie. It’s really green. I definitely wanted a change to somewhere I could actually see seasons and Georgia has really, really crazy weather. But my freshman year, I remember coming in and everyone saying ‘oh sorry, our gardens don’t look that great. We’re in a drought’. And I’m looking around thinking hmmm, not so much but ok. So it’s definitely a climate and a little bit of a culture change, but definitely something I’m happy I did.”
All of you have to balance life outside of softball. Talk a bit about how that balance has shifted, especially during your final season with the Owls as you prepare for the professional world.
Lindsay (Nursing Major): “I think it’s wild. I get up at 4:30 in the morning and go to clinicals for eight hours and then come to practice or a game. That’s not easy physically or mentally, especially this time of year with finals coming up. Just trying to essentially balance work, school and softball is definitely difficult, but I’m going to gain from it in one way or another.”
Jessica (English Education): “It’s like having two jobs. When I was student-teaching, that was in the fall and I don’t know how Lindsay is doing it now, because I wasn’t even thinking about softball. I didn’t come to practice because I was at school until 5 p.m. and practice was over with by that point. It’s really challenging, but it’s a part of being a student-athlete. It’s something you’ve got to deal with.”
Brittany (Biology): “It is definitely difficult because I couldn’t come to practice as much as I wanted to, as I have almost a full-time internship at the Georgia Aquarium. It’s definitely hard to try and keep your game at a high level while you’re trying to get your schoolwork done and then applying to graduate schools like I have been. Your entire life is bearing down on you the last two weeks but you’re thinking ‘I have to focus on softball’. So it’s hard to try and balance everything but it’s definitely something that will make life easier down the road.”
Do you have any big plans after graduation?
Brittany: “On Friday, I actually just found out I got into Kennesaw State for graduate school as part of the Inaugural class of the Integrated Biology Masters Program, so I’m very excited about that. I’ve talked to a lot of the professors and just knowing a lot of them here, I am really excited about continuing my studies here.”
Mandi: “I’m finishing my finance degree and have been going to some job interviews, and I have also applied and been accepted to some law schools. I have to decide what is going to be best financially. It is difficult but I currently have a part-time job to keep me active in case I don’t get a big girl job right away. If I don’t get one, I will be going back to school, either law school or to get an MBA or something in that realm.”
