Brooke Swain
Contributing Writer
As a senior softball player, I have played softball for 18 years. Out of those 18 years, the past four years at The College of Wooster have been my favorite. My experience with the softball team has been unmatched and I personally feel like every single teammate is my sister. The amount of respect that I have for every girl on our team is incredible and I am blessed to have been a part of this program for my collegiate career.
When making the choice of where I wanted to go to college, I chose Wooster because of the chance to continue playing my two favorite sports: softball and volleyball. My experience here at Wooster has been a roller coaster, but the one constant thing that I always had was my teammates. The softball team has always been filled with outstanding leaders. Chelsea Copley ’19, Morgan Bailey ’20 and Kendall Lloyd ’22 were top-notch leaders that helped me adapt to college life when I first arrived. These women taught me how to thrive in your own niche while also giving and receiving criticism to become a better player and person.
When we lost a season due to the pandemic, it was heartbreaking. The seniors lost their best season, and the rest of us lost a season to improve, to learn and to grow. As we navigated the challenging waters upon our return to campus, we learned how to adjust with the changing rules and regulations. This diligence eventually gave us the ability to resume what we know as a normal season of softball games. As a senior captain this year, my past experiences have helped me encourage our team to be better teammates on and off the field as well as teaching them tips and tricks for improving their time management.
Being a part of the Wooster softball team is an honor and I am extremely thankful for the guidance that Coach Rumph has brought me. She has taught me many valuable life lessons every day at practice and she continues to motivate me to be better by her own outstanding accomplishments. Coach Rumph personally cares for each of her players and has even taken the time to write letters of recommendation for graduate programs for myself and other players. I will use the life lessons, the time management and the consistency that I have learned while playing softball and volleyball at The College of Wooster when I move to continue my education at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry.
