To my coaches, thank you for giving me an opportunity to wear this jersey and represent something so much bigger than myself. Thank you for your commitment and willingness to help me grow each and every day the past few years. Coacha, thank you for sticking with me through the good, the bad, and the ugly. Thank you for being so overly patient with me and helping to shape not only the softball player I am but also the woman I am today. Thank you for making the bullpen the “Happiest Place on Earth” even though I had my fair share of meltdowns in there.  I am forever in debt to you and to the FSU softball program. TWil, thank you for always being honest with me and telling me the truth even when I didn’t want to hear it, but also thank you for being someone that I can always come to if I need a laugh.  Snider, your constant inspirational and motivational advice keeps me going each and every day and I am lucky to have a friend in faith.  Support staff, thank you for keeping me strong through the last five years whether it was spiritually, physically, or emotionally. Thank you to each and every one of you for always being there when I needed you. This program and I wouldn’t be where it is without each and every one of you. To the managers, thank you for catching bullpens, being a second parent to Ollie, shagging home run balls, and always catching my good side on camera! A huge thank you to the FSU boosters and the best softball fans in the world thank you for your continuous support and for believing in me and FSU Softball. To my sweet Hayden, thank you for showing me courage, resiliency, and compassion. Seeing your smile in the dugout makes my heart happy and I can’t wait to go on our Universal trip after graduation! To my teammates, my sisters, my best friends, I wouldn’t be standing where I am today without you.  We have been together through the blood, the sweat, and oh the tears. Thank you for accepting me and loving me for who I am. Thank you for growing with me and for always holding me accountable. Although I will not be on the field with you next year I cannot wait to cheer you on and be your number one fan. I love you guys more than anything and I am proud of the women that you have all become. A special shout out to Cali, Carsyn, and Zoe for welcoming me to your senior class with open arms and for always having my back.  We have been through some of the best moments in our lives and some of the hardest and I am lucky to have you three by my side.  Although we are going our separate ways, you girls will always have a special place in my heart. I am proud to be a Seminole and I will forever remain unconquered. Florida State you will forever be the best decision of my life. GO NOLES!

The post Entry #5: The Finale appeared first on Justin's World of Softball.

Wow. What a whirlwind these past two months have been. I am BEYOND sorry for not keeping you updated as much as I wanted two. AKA time to catch up.

Our FSU softball team was honored with the 2018 NCAA National Champion FSU soccer team at the Florida State President’s House as well as the Florida Governor’s House back in March. Both were extremely fun events and we are so thankful for the opportunity. Spring break (wow it has been long) was an extremely fun week with the team. We played a lot of competitive games and we spent a lot of time as a team. Our head coach even took us to Urban Air. Although we were surrounded around 6-12 year-olds we had a blast!

As for our games, we have been riding the highs and the lows. We started off ACC play excellent. We had great series against Notre Dame, NC State, and Virginia along with an awesome win on the road at Florida. Then came the “post-UF hangover”. We dropped series to Louisville and UNC along with a loss to UF at home. ROUGH. Although we did lose a fair share of games, it taught us SO much about ourselves and about Team 36. We learned how to fight back. We learned not to make the moment or a team bigger or smaller than what they are. Most importantly, we learned to enjoy the game. Coming off of a national championship win and a heck of a start on the 2019 season builds pressure. Pressure is a privilege, but we got away from doing some things that we do best. Personally, I think we got caught up in the fear of failure. Overall, that stinks because that is something that WE CAN CONTROL. You can’t be afraid to fail, because it will consume you. The worst part is that all the hard work you have put into building your craft is stripped away because of your mentality. Overall, I am proud of the way the team has bounced back. We are beyond ready to attack every pitch throughout the rest of the season.

As for my personal life, I am officially an alumnus of Florida State University. I have decided to move to Sarasota, Florida after season is over and hopefully start nursing school at the end of August (fingers crossed I get in). My boyfriend, Dylan, has been having a great season so far and I cannot wait to meet up with the other girlfriends/fiancés and support him in person once season is over.

During the last few weeks, I have had a few super fun adventures. I was able to fly home and surprise my sister, Kaitlin, at her high school softball senior night. ​(photo below) I was able to FINALLY make it to the Flying High FSU Circus. This was something that I have wanted to do for the past five years and BOY was it worth the wait! I crushed finals and started a healthy lifestyle meal prepping change. All in all, it’s been an amazing last few months of college. I cannot wait to see what postseason and this summer has in store for me.

The previous blog post had no questions in the comments, but remember that if you have any questions, feel free to comment below.

Coming soon… ACC/NCAA postseason, summer adventures

The post Entry #4: Time to Catch Up appeared first on Justin's World of Softball.

The competition was TOP NOTCH and every single game we played was an absolute dogfight.  Since the tournament was in Florida, many of my family members attended the games. My boyfriend, Dylan, was even able to make very single game I threw while driving back and forth from spring training. I am beyond blessed with the support system I have. Needless to say, this inaugural ESPN tournament was incredible and as an alum, I will definitely be making the trip to go back next year and cheer on my Noles!

​During the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational something extremely special occurred at the John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. Almost all of the sixteen teams attending the tournament were able to take time out of their busy schedules and come share some smiles with the children at the hospital.

This visit was possible because Michele Smith and I teamed up with Katrina Mason and other All Children’s staff members. The idea first came about when I was at the hospital touring. The ESPN tournament was brought up and I found out that Michele Smith wanted to tie the two subjects together. I thought it would be awesome if some of the girls participating in the tournament would want to come out the hospital. Late last year I organized many visits between FSU athletics and the local Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, so I thought to myself, “How hard can this be?” I found the rosters of the sixteen teams participating and picked a girl from each team. I then went on Instagram and asked them if they would be interested in participating. The feedback was outstanding! Every team wanted to visit and each was extremely helpful with getting me their schedules to me to find a date. I relayed the information to Michele and Katrina and rest was history. The All Children’s staff was extremely accommodating and the smiles on the children’s faces were unforgettable.

The following weekend we hosted the Unconquered Invitational. The tournament included games against Elon, Lipscomb, and Samford. I was very pumped for our game against Elon because my sister signed her Letter of Intent this fall to attend the university after she graduates high school this spring. Coacha (our head coach) also received her 500th win as the head coach at Florida State. Woohooo Go Coacha!!! I honestly wish everyone had the opportunity to play for a coaching staff as amazing as ours. Hayden was also extremely pumped for this weekend because she does not travel with us. Therefore, she was back in the dugout cheering us on! She is also kicking her cancer’s butt and is finished with all of her hardest chemo treatments. Woohoo Go Hayden!!!

Our last series of games that I have to catch you up on was our eleven-day road trip. WOW talk about team bonding. There really is nothing like spending 11 days straight with 22 girls. The trip started in Orlando, where we played a tournament against UCF, and it ended in Arizona where we played a doubleheader at Grand Canyon and a three-game series at the University of Arizona. Playing in Orlando was awesome because once again I was able to see my family, friends, and boyfriend. The weather was also spectacular and we competed against some really good programs. Personally, Arizona didn’t start off on the best foot because we dropped our first game all season to GCU. I didn’t throw very well, but no one is perfect and because of that loss, I know I will be better for my team in the long run with the things I learned from that game. Before the bus ventured to Tucson, Arizona, we got a chance to have breakfast with our mental coach, Brian Cain. He opened up in his beautiful home to our team and we got to meet his amazing wife and the French Army (his two French bulldogs). It was a great check-in for the team and for me personally. Our heads were clear and our stomachs were full and we were ready to drive to Tucson. Arizona is a legendary program and they scheduled their alumni weekend for our series. Their new stadium was ELECTRIC and it was an amazing atmosphere to play in. I am beyond proud of our team and the fight that we carried throughout the road trip and our season so far.

As you can see it has been a very softball-filled last few weeks. Therefore, not much has happened in my personal life. Anatomy Physiology II (the only class I am in) is going great, I can’t believe I am already more than half way through the semester. I ended up not being able to work as a CNA in the Children’s Center because by the time they trained me, my time in Tallahassee would have almost been over. On the bright side, I was able to sign up as a volunteer and I am back in the Children’s Center helping out the Child Life Specialist. I am very thankful for Tallahassee Memorial Hospital to still give me an opportunity to receive hospital experience. I celebrated three years with my boyfriend Dylan and although I will not see him much the next few months, I am pumped to start watching him play again. Two of my best friends recently got engaged. Shout out to Lex and Hallie. They are my best NARP (Non-Athletic Regular People) friends. Therefore, I am taking on lots of pitching lessons so I can save up to celebrate their engagement and weddings this coming year.

The only question I received this week was something about how Carsyn’s bat broke. Unfortunately, I really do not know anything about what bats are made of, but we do have a trip to Louisville in the upcoming weeks and I will try to get you an answer there. Remember, if you have any comments, questions, or concerns, feel free to comment below.

Coming soon… ACC Play, Spring Break, and Alumni Weekend

The post Entry #3: Catching Up appeared first on Justin's World of Softball.

FSU softball also adopted a young girl from the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation. Hayden Stone is an 11 year-old battling rhabdomyosarcoma. Hayden loves elephants and her favorite food is doughnuts. Her brother Harrison is eight-years-old and loves slime. Hayden’s dad is the pastor and her mom is the worship leader at a local church in Tallahassee. Her and her family instantly clicked with the entire team and we are beyond lucky to call them part of our family. Hayden got the chance to throw the first pitch of Fan Day and she slung in it there for a strike! She also was able to kick her weekly treatment’s butt and watch FOUR games with us during opening weekend! She even joined the bullpen for their dance parties when the Seminoles put a run on the scoreboard.

As for my personal life, it has been a crazy two/three weeks. I turned 23. Wow. I know that is not very old in the normal lifespan of things, but still being in college playing softball I definitely feel like a grandma around my younger Seminole sisters. I can now relate to Maddie O’Brien, Jessica Burroughs, and the rest of the redshirt seniors that have made their marks on the program. I also completed my CNA (certified nursing assistant) program and took my state exam. I passed woohoo!!! Therefore, I am going to try and pick up a shift or two in the Children’s Center at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and continue to grow my knowledge in pediatrics.

I also had the chance to go surprise my best friend, Gwen Svekis, in Indiana! She was previously Oregon’s starting catcher but graduated last year. She is now the graduate assistant for University of Indiana. Although it was VERY cold, I had the best time exploring Indiana and watching her be able to share her passion for the game in a different outlet. Finally, after an amazing offseason I said goodbye to my boyfriend as he left for Spring Training with the Pirates! I am beyond excited to say that this will be our LAST few months of long-distance after the past three years! Whoop Whoop!

I know I mentioned in my last blog post that if you had any questions about me or my post to comment below! Last week, someone asked me what does the term “redshirt senior” mean. A redshirt senior is an athlete in their fifth year of academics, but their fourth and final year of eligibility of competition. When I was a freshman, my coaches decided that it was in my best interest, as well as the program’s, for me to redshirt my freshman year. Therefore, I would not dress out or play any game during my first year of college. Although it took a while for me to accept the fact that I wasn’t going to be able to suit up and play with the rest of my teammates, I definitely needed a year of maturity. Along with maturity, I also needed the year to grow my knowledge of the game and build strength in the weight room. I am unbelievably lucky that my coaches believed in me enough to give me the opportunity to redshirt my freshman year.

Coming soon…. St.Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational; John Hopkins All Children’s Visit; First midweek game of the season; Unconquered Invitational

The post Starting The Regular Season appeared first on Justin's World of Softball.

​Hi everyone! My name is Meghan King, and this is Kinger’s Korner. I’m really excited to do a blog this year and I want to take you all with me on the journey of the 2019 Florida State Seminoles. I’ll check in throughout the season with stories both on and off the field and of the joys and struggles of being a college student-athlete.

For those that may not know much about me, I am a redshirt senior pitcher on the Florida State softball team. I was born in the southern suburbs of Chicago and continued to live there until I was 12 years old. My family then decided to move to south Florida and I have lived there ever since. I am beyond thankful for my family, especially for my parents. My dad, Mike, is the most hard-working man I know. He has raised me to be strong, competitive, passionate, and confident. On the other hand, my mom, Karen, is the most selfless woman I know. She has raised me to be positive, compassionate, honest, and disciplined. I am also extremely close to both my brother and sister. My brother, Ryan, is in his junior year at Stetson University. He is a Business and Finance major who just came back from studying abroad for a month in Austria. My sister, Kaitlin, is a senior in high school at St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale. She recently signed her letter of intent to play softball at Elon University. Our last member of the family is my wiener dog, Oliver. He lives with me at FSU and is the best cuddler in the world. I am a Family and Child Sciences major with a minor in Psychology and a certificate in Developmental Disabilities. After graduation, I am going to apply to accelerated nursing programs, with the hope of becoming a pediatric oncology registered nurse. I am also a member of the Puerto Rico National softball team and hope to go to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

​I am only enrolled in one course this semester, Anatomy and Physiology II. I was planning on a light semester to focus on my last season, but anyone who knows me knows that I like to keep myself busy. Therefore, I enrolled in an online CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) program to jumpstart my nursing career and give me a little bit of hospital experience before I start my clinicals. I also am creating a program this semester with the child life specialist, Olivia, at the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital called Adopt-A-Patient. Throughout this program, each Florida State athletic team will adopt a patient for one full year. These patients have a wide range of diagnoses, but the hope is for the athletic team to take the patient’s mind off of whatever is going on health-wise in their life. On the other hand, each athletic team gets a sense of perspective and how lucky the players are to get the opportunity to play the sport they love as healthy individuals. As you can see, I now have a full plate this semester.

Although I was definitely not ready to start my last college semester, I was extremely excited to be back with my softball sisters after the long break. Over break, we each had an accountability partner on the team to make sure we were still putting in our work either in the weight room and on the field even though we were all in different places with our families. To show each other and our coaching staff the work we put in, we ran our conditioning test as a team during the first week of classes.

This conditioning was very close to my heart because it is the LAST one that I will ever have to run in my life (so not sad about it). To end the week, the seniors held a team practice since the coaches aren’t allowed to be on the field yet. It was awesome to get everyone together and toss the ball around. I am very proud of Team 36 and the work that everyone put in over break. I cannot wait to get back out on the field next week for team practice and get this season started!​

Hope you enjoyed reading my blog. If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below and I will do my best answering them at the end on my next blog. Thanks again for reading!

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