| Advertisement |
|
|
MISHAWAKA -- Marian's softball team is off to a 5-0 start, and senior outfielder Colleen Doyle is leading the charge.
"I want to work as hard as I can this year," Doyle said. "I think I started out well."
A .600 batting average through the first week of the season certainly qualifies as starting out well.
"Marked improvement from last year," Knights coach George Grenert said of his left fielder. "She's just a lot more focused and a lot more confident in what she's doing at the plate."
"I just worked out a lot in the offseason," Doyle said, "like in the gym and stuff, like on my swing, and just being a lot more comfortable and more relaxed when I go up to hit, and just seeing the ball better."
Academically, Doyle has a 4.46 GPA on a 4.0 scale, due to taking honors classes. And she's ranked in the top 7 in her class.
"I think she sets the standard for the rest of the team for academics," Grenert said. "That's a positive on her part as part of being the team captain also."
Those numbers are just as important as the ones she puts up on the diamond.
"It was really important for college and stuff," Doyle said. "So I think they were both important. But right now, I think, seeing what my future is, I think the numbers I did in school are probably a little more important."
Her future is going to Notre Dame this fall, where she'll pursue a career in either athletic training or sports medicine. And her focus will shift entirely to academics, so she wants to make the most of her last season playing softball.
"Just to make it something to go out with a bang," Doyle said.