< Back | Home

Miami's five seniors set the bar high for the rest of the team to follow with their work ethic. Now, they focus on pushing towards a conference championship.

Seniors look to leave legacy of leadership at MU

By: Dan Kukla

Posted: 4/11/08

Four years ago, Miami's softball team's season came to a disappointing end with a loss to Bowling Green State University in the MAC Championship game. It was the second year in a row that Miami fell just one game short of a conference title and the national tournament.

The next year would be different. Knocking off Marshall 4-0 in the team's third straight championship appearance, the 'Hawks clinched Miami's first ever trip to the big dance.

They were only freshman then, but this year's softball senior class had already begun to leave a lasting mark on the school's program.

"The whole athletic department has done a pretty good job of forming and creating the culture of champions," senior outfielder Breanna Robinson said. "That's it in itself. We're competitive. We have heart. We have pride. There's a lot of tradition that goes along with being a Miami RedHawk softball player."

Now in their third and final season since going the distance, these seniors are set to finish their Miami careers just the way they started. After a shaky start to their final season playing for the Red and White, the seniors have rallied a team that is now on track for a truly special ending. Even though they remain focused on taking their season one game at a time, there is no denying that leaving Miami with a second title in hand is everyone's goal.

"Anything less than a MAC championship would be a disappointment," senior first baseman Halle Popson said.

There are five seniors on Miami's softball team: outfielder Christine Bills, first baseman Halle Popson, outfielder Breanna Robinson, catcher Natalie Savona and third baseman Kimberly Williams. They are truly a unique group. Coming from a diverse set of histories, they are all bound by a common sisterhood.

"We're together all the time," Robinson said. "We see each other more than we see our own families. It's pretty easy to form that bond. Coming in, you see the sisterhood. It's kind of like a tradition of Miami softball."

Robinson was not recruited to Miami, but had to walk on to the team. There was a time when she wasn't even sure if she would be able to tryout.

Needless to say, she made the team and has taken full advantage of the opportunity. This year she is leading the team in hits, RBI's, triples and homeruns. She, along with the other two four-year starters, Popson and Bills, now make up the heart of the team.

"All three have career numbers that are just crazy," head coach Kelly Kovach Schoenly said. "The three of them have been so dependable. They have been such a solid core that we can build from. To have that consistency for four years is amazing."

Popson's leadership extends beyond the playing field. She is a co-captain along with Williams and strives to set an example for the rest of the team to follow.

"(Being a captain) is a lot of responsibility and it's a lot of respect," Popson said. "We take it upon ourselves to hold ourselves to an even higher standard because eyes are on you all the time."

Coach Schoenly said she is very impressed by the way Williams holds her head high in all circumstances and believes that this an especially meaningful form of leadership.

"Kimberly didn't play all the time last year," Schoenly said. "For her to do what she did with her leadership on the bench-she gained a ton of respect from her teammates. Now that she's a full-time starter it carries out onto the field."

The leadership on the team is not limited to Popson and Williams. All five seniors have worked hard to step up as role models and serve as the heart and soul of the team.

"We are the best illustration of hard workers," Popson said "People who gut it out and may not always have the most talent on the field, but they will work the hardest. That is one legacy that I know this senior class has left behind."

This senior class has its own unique way of leading: personality.

"I think we're pretty comfortable with who we are," Popson said. "That's a maturity thing. We kind of take it upon ourselves to act by example and point out those hard conversations or things that people might not want to hear but need to hear. The seniors did it to us our freshman year and it made us who we are today."

Being genuine as both players and people has a profound effect on the rest of the team that is not going unnoticed.

"The five of them are such big personalities that you don't go through a practice without them saying something funny, or them saying something that's needed," Schoenly said. "I hope we have some people that are going to step into those roles, because those are some big shoes to fill."

Schoenly said her seniors have picked up a lot of their leadership abilities from watching other teams. She said most Miami athletic teams that did well this year were driven by quality senior leadership.

Since softball is a spring sport, Schoenly has been intentional about pointing this out to her senior class, and so far, the message has stuck.

Now that her lesson is translating onto the field, Schoenly can draw paralls between the softball seniors and other impactful senior athletes on campus.

"They're like our Ryan Jones and Nathan Davis," Schoenly said.

While there is certainly a lot of softball that has yet to be played this season, it's hard for the team to not look at what they have already accomplished. The team is on the brink of pushing the program to new heights and just the very thought of that has everyone excited.

"I knew that we had the capability to take this program to the next level and I think we've done a good job as a senior class of doing that," Popson said.

Regardless of what happens this season, there is no denying the lasting effect that these five seniors will leave on the Miami softball program.

"The standard that they have for themselves is something that doesn't always need to be said," Schoenly said. "They hold their actions to such a high standard that everyone can see it and will learn from it. We might not feel the effects of it until they're gone, but they're setting the tone for the program for years to come."