Fall practice is heating up as Auburn softball prepares to return to the field for the 2021 season. Head coach Mickey Dean will lead a squad of 29 student-athletes onto the field to compete, nine of which will be putting on the Auburn uniform for the first time. As the weeks leading up to first pitch count down, we'll introduce the newest Tigers to join the program. Next up, Kelsey Schmidt, an outfielder with sneaky power, hailing from Maineville, Ohio.
Q: Why did you choose to play softball at Auburn?
Schmidt: My dream was to play in the SEC and in the south. It is very far from home, but I knew what I wanted and that was to go south. Auburn is the definition of my dream. The school is great. The atmosphere is so family-oriented. Athletics are unstoppable. The softball program is so welcoming with open arms and is like my home away from home. I know I will be taken great care of, and my teammates will have my back. As soon as I came to campus, I said to myself, "Yes, this is it. This is where I want to be." It was the greatest decision I ever made.
Q: What is your intended major and how do you plan to use it?
Schmidt: I am majoring in biomedical sciences with a pre-med concentration. I plan to use my major to get my master's degree and either become a neonatal practitioner or a physician's assistant.
Q: Who is your favorite professional sports team to follow?
Schmidt: My favorite professional sports team is the Cincinnati Bengals because it is my hometown team, and I love football. They are by no means great, but I like to know who we played and how close the game is. I love watching NFL football. It is such an intense and fun sport, and it is really fun to watch.
Q: What is your favorite Auburn tradition or the tradition you are most excited to experience?
Schmidt: My favorite Auburn tradition is rolling Toomer's. That is something that is very unique and only associated with Auburn. It's so fun to win a football game, go down to Toomer's, see all the toilet paper hanging from the trees and searching to find toilet paper rolls to get to it before someone else. It's so awesome!
Q: What is your favorite thing to do outside of softball?
Schmidt: My favorite thing to do outside of softball is be by a lake. I like boating, jet skiing, tubing, etc. I have grown up being by water, and I wouldn't want it any other way. Being by the water is so relaxing and freeing. You literally don't think about anything other than what wave am I going to hit next. All your stress goes away. I love it and wish it was a year-round thing.
Q: What is your mindset going into each game?
Schmidt: My mindset going into each game is simple - attack and give everything I got. Some games are easier than others to go about with that mindset. I know as soon as I take the field to give everything I have. If I make a mistake, but was giving everything I had, so what. In the batter's box, I think to attack. Don't let the pitcher get ahead. If there is a strike, then take it over the fence. Get in the pitcher's head and not let the pitcher get in mine. It's important to me to be the hardest worker.
Q: What is your favorite movie and why?
Schmidt: "The Notebook" - I absolutely adore that movie. It's heart-warming, and it shows the real definition of love. It really makes you think. It is also very sad, but very happy at the same time. That's why I love it.
Q: What other positions have you played, and why is outfield your favorite?
Schmidt: I have played every single position throughout my career. Outfield is my favorite because you're the last line of defense. If the infield doesn't make the play, it is up to the outfielders to make the play. We get to make the big plays. If we miss a ball it turns into a double or triple, but if infield makes a mistake, we can save them and keep them with a single. We can also rob home runs, which is the best feeling ever.
Q: If you had to be stuck on an island with three of your teammates, who would you want them to be and why?
Schmidt: If I was stuck on an island with three teammates, I would want Maddie Penta, Reena Falisi and Sydney Cox stuck with me. Maddie is the fun one that will make sure we still have a good time even while being stranded. Reena is the smart and educated one that will make sure we are doing the right thing, and she'd help us to be able to leave. Sydney is the one who always knows what is going on, so she would be the information giver and make sure we know how to get away. I think I would survive if I had those three with me.
Q: Who would you say is your biggest fan?
Schmidt: My biggest fan is my great grandma. She is who I look up to. She was a widow at 30 years old with four children. She's one of the strongest women I know, and she sets the definition of what a woman should be like in our family. She used to babysit my brother and I, and we were so close. Today, she is almost 90 years old and still rocking it. She would stick up for me and be there for me through everything. If I wasn't doing something right, she would let me know. She also, just like every grandparent, got me anything I wanted. She is the sweetest lady, and I want to be as strong-willed and sweet as her. It has been a blessing to grow up with a great grandma. I love you, Mam-ma Faye!
Q: What advice would you give to your younger self or any other girls who are just beginning their softball career?
Schmidt: Never give up. Life is going to be hard. I's going to throw the craziest curveballs at you, but you can't stop moving. Have a great work ethic and want to be the best. That workout is going to be hard, that conditioning might make you feel horrible, you might have little sleep, but you just need to get a few swings in. Don't stop and just know it's making you better. Also, set a goal and achieve it. Once you have your goal, do everything you possibly can until you achieve it. Give 100 percent at everything you're doing. You are going to make mistakes, but learn from it and move on. Once it happens, it is over, and you can't get it back - so move forward and achieve the next thing. Set a goal, work hard, make mistakes, learn, achieve and succeed.
Q: If you could give a message to the Auburn family, what would it be?
Schmidt: Thank you for welcoming me with such open arms. I am so blessed to be a part of the family for the next four years and be welcomed by everyone. I am so thankful to be able to play softball and represent this school. I can't wait to wear Auburn across the front of my jersey. This is a crazy time we are living in, but I am going to make the best of it. I won't let everyone down. War Eagle!