One of the finest players in Kansas softball history, Maggie Hull-Tietz graduated in 2013 as an all-American and the program’s all-time leader in hits, runs, and batting average.
In the summer of 2016, she returned to her alma mater as the Director of Operations on Megan Smith’s Jayhawks coaching staff. Hull-Tietz spent two seasons in the position before departing after the 2018 spring season.
Following her departure from the program, Hull-Tietz penned a letter that she shared with JWOS. In it, she opened up about her tenure on the Jayhawks staff; her decision to leave; and the new venture that pulled her away from the diamond.
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For the past eight years, I have been serving in a ministry called Young Life. I became a student leader as a sophomore in college while I was also a student-athlete at the University of Kansas. My husband Kevin, who I was dating at the time, also became a volunteer Young Life Leader around the same time. Pouring our lives into college students, building relationships with them, mentoring them, and helping them grow in their faith has always been a passion that both Kevin and I have shared. This ministry is what kept us in Lawrence even after we both graduated from the University of Kansas and got married! In 2014, when we realized that full-time ministry with college students in Lawrence was our long-term calling, I was interning with Young Life and Kevin was preparing to transition out of personal training and into a full-time, paid role as KU Young Life College Director. The following year, I was a part-time softball coach giving private lessons and pursing this joint mission alongside Kevin.
In the spring of 2016, I was offered the position as Director of Operations for the KU Softball Team and a chance to work under my former head coach, Megan Smith. Since I was already established in Lawrence, this opportunity was too good to pass up. I knew that taking this job in college athletics ultimately meant that I would be sacrificing Young Life, but at the same time, this job still fit into my primary calling to serve college students at the University of Kansas. In my mind, this just narrowed my focus to serving the softball student-athletes. I was excited to be around the game again at a high level and wondered what God had for me in the world of college athletics.
During my two years as Director of Operations, I learned a lot about a career in college athletics and a lot about myself. I loved working under Coach Smith and of course, working for my alma mater, the University of Kansas. Being around the game again was energizing and exciting for me. The Director of Operations job was difficult and tedious, but after my first year, I felt like I settled into my job and was thriving. However, I also quickly discovered that a career in college athletics meant sacrificing my gifts and calling to be in full-time ministry. While I was serving college students in a sense, I was more behind the scenes instead of in a direct mentoring and leadership role. I missed the ability to build deep relationships with college students. I missed leading Bible Studies and helping students understand Jesus. I missed our weekly Young Life clubs and engaging with new students, helping them to find a community where they would be accepted and loved for who they are.
Additionally, my administrative gifts that helped me thrive as a Director of Operations were also needed in Young Life. Kevin is such a natural pastor, teacher, and evangelist, but he needed help with the event planning and the fundraising. As his wife who also feels called to this mission, I’ve felt compelled to come into more of a direct role by his side and to help out in these specific areas. Additionally, we make a great team as my presence helps him to focus on mentoring the males in our ministry and I can focus on mentoring the females.
We had dreamed about the upcoming transition even before the exciting news that I was pregnant with our first child! Our daughter Lydia’s arrival only confirmed that the time was now to pursue my calling because of my ability to work from home or bring Lydia on the job with me in ministry. The travel of college athletics would have been difficult for me personally as a new mom and I desired to be home more when we started a family. In God’s perfect timing, Lydia’s due date was in mid-May, just after the conclusion of softball season. This allowed me to finish out the year as D-Ops, as we had our last game of the season and she was born eight days later!
Already, this year has been filled with Young Life ministry to students alongside Kevin and stepping into a new role as the Young Life College Midwest Divisional Admin. Our Young Life students love to come over to our house and hold Lydia while we talk about Jesus and life. I also took over in our ministry in the role of Donor Care and am using my gifts to serve on the financial side of maintaining our non-profit ministry. I’m enjoying working from home while caring for the daily needs of my little one!
I know that when softball season starts back up, I will miss my days spent in the KU Athletics office and Rock Chalk Park. I will miss seeing our players and watching them practice and excel in their gifts. I will miss working with the staff to help our players reach their greatest potential as female athletes. But the team knows that I won’t be a stranger! I can’t wait to cheer them on from the stands and take Lydia to games! I have started up some softball lessons on the side as well, and the reality is that I’ll probably never fully leave the game of softball. But what I do know is that softball and coaching will always come second to my calling into full-time ministry with my husband. I am excited for this next season to see all that God has in store for my family and our ministry to college students at the University of Kansas!
(Editor’s note: You can find Maggie’s blog at www.riseredeemed.com)
