Christian Bond, Guest Writer
A successful first attempt in sports is a rare occurrence for any new athlete. More athletes fail their first time around, finding success later rather than sooner.
This isn’t the case for first-year outfielder Jessica Alcomendas.
Alcomendas’ first collegiate hit for the Pacific Lutheran University softball team was a home run against Northwest University.
The first-year outfielder found a pitch to her liking and drove it over the left field wall.
Alcomendas calls Vancouver, Wash. home. She attended Mountain View High School where she was a 2nd team all league outfielder her junior and senior year, as well as captain of the softball team.
When asked about the transition from high school to college softball, Alcomendas said, “The transition hasn’t been that bad for me.”
She said that college softball is a lot more intense than high school softball.
“We do a lot more weight lifting and more hours of practice than in high school,” Alcomendas said. “But other than that I was honestly ready for that next step of intensity for softball. I love playing college ball here at PLU.”
Alcomendas attributes here success to both her parents and past coaches.
“When I was four years old my parents put me into multiple sports to get a feel for what sport I liked best,” Alcomendas said. “The moment I stepped onto a softball field I knew that this was my sport.”
Alcomendas described her parents as her role models, because “they taught me that it is okay to fail and in the game of softball you have to be okay with failing sometimes but be able to find your way back to being the best you can be.”
Alcomendas said that her past coaches were a huge part of who she is today.
“They pushed me to be the best I could be and would believe in me when some days I didn’t even believe in myself,”Alcomendas said. ”I play for my role models on that field because without them I wouldn’t love the game as a much as I do now or cherish it as much as I do.”
There are very limited opportunities for softball players to continue on to be professionals. Alcomendas understands that these next four years could be her last for playing competitive softball. Her dream away from the softball diamond involves becoming a K-9 officer.
Alcomendas is still young, but shows great promise for the future of PLU softball. Her energy in the outfield, along with her big bat are great attributes the team can use.
