Ellen Castle '19 Recruiting Profile

Softball is something I’ve played since I was six. I watched my older sister play, and decided I wanted to join as well. Although I was involved with it at a young age, I didn’t have a true passion for it until middle school. This passion began to develop once I used my personal assets to my advantage, and that lead me to become a slapper. I am blessed to have had the opportunity to participate in many sports throughout my life. These include basketball, gymnastics, track, cross country, dance, soccer, and of course softball. I’ve enjoyed them all in their time, but my love for softball is the strongest. I love softball because it pushes me to better myself physically and mentally. Softball has given me opportunities I could never have imagined. As a freshman in 2016, my high school team earned 4th place at state, which is one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had the privilege to take part in. Not only has softball pushed me to become a better athlete, it has also pushed me to become a better person. I have gained life skills by communicating with coaches, teammates, parents, and others followers of the sport. These skills will help me outside of softball and will aid me throughout my life.

Something I pride myself in is my leadership and hard work. These two go hand in hand, and I don’t believe you can have one without the other. I strive to hold myself accountable for everything I do, not just sports and school. When one combines these qualities, it will lead them towards success, even if they can’t see the results right away. My hard work has made me the softball player I am today, especially with my slapping skills. I can still remember the first time I tried slapping. I went to a team clinic one winter put on by a local community college. The coached pulled me aside to help me start learning the process. Once they were done with me, I re-joined the other players, and went back to my regular right-handed hitting. The coach noticed this and said to me “If you want to be a slapper, you are never hitting right-handed again.” That was in January, and my first tournament was at the end of March, which left me with about three months to learn how to hit left-handed. It took tons of work to get a mediocre looking left-handed swing in time for tournaments. This process taught me that it takes a lot more than hitting a bucket of balls once a week to be good. It gave me humility, because I had to start at square one with my hitting. However, it also made me a ten times better hitter than I would have been if I had stuck to being a right-handed hitter. I am now a triple-threat slapper, and can hit away as well. This work ethic has since carried over into my fielding. I’m no longer afraid to dive after balls, and lay out for my team. Finally, as I mentioned before, my hard work has made others look up to me as a leader. People will follow the actions of someone who is outworking them. This starts a movement, and pretty soon the whole team is working just a hard as the girl who started it. Being a leader has made my go the extra mile. It also holds me accountable knowing people will follow my actions.

In my search for a college, I want to match it to my studies above everything else. I need to be a part of a program that focuses their athletes on school before softball. Being a good softball player won’t help me in the real world, but having a good education and quality grades will. I also want a school that will push me to not only become a better player, but also a better person. If I don’t gain any personal qualities or life skills while in college, then I will consider it not well worth the time. Lastly, I want a place I am comfortable with calling my home away from home. I need to be in an environment that treats me like family, and expects me to do the same.