Samantha Richtol '23 Recruiting Profile

Ever since I was a little girl and my grandfather turned on the, WCWS I knew that I wanted to play softball, and I have been playing softball since kindergarten. Right before my freshman softball season, COVID-19 hit my area. The first thing in Maryland to go was sports. This meant no high school season and possibly no travel season. Softball has always been my outlet for emotions. When I’m on that field nothing else matters to me but softball and my team. Not having a high school season and the chance of not having a summer season either broke my heart. It taught me not to take for granted the time I have on the field or practice time. It also taught me to appreciate my teammates more because during the shutdown, we continually checked on each other making sure everyone on the team knew they had people to talk too.

Midway through the summer of 2020, USSSA announced that they would be hosting tournaments again. My team's first tournament of the season was the State Tournament. My team played horribly in this tournament. The next tournament we came in third place. This was better but not good enough. Our third tournament of the season was the National Tournament. My team went out the fisrt day and played ball like no one had ever seen. We ended up going 7-1 and winning the tournament. This was the best ball me, or anyone on my team, had ever played. I never want to forget that feeling of storming the field after we won and tackling each other. I won MVP of this tournament where everyone told me repeatedly, they were proud and that I deserved it. I was told I won MVP because of my ability to command the field, see plays before they occur, pick my teammates up when they made a mistake, and help my teammates focus while having fun. My coaches continue to say I have hard work and determination and even the slightest mistake has me practicing even harder than before. My teammates often make fun of me for trying so hard but to me a practice is not really a practice if you did not fall and get back up or are not dirty somehow or another. As a multi-sport athlete, I believe I can bring my quality work ethic, determination, and leadership skills to any program.