There continues to be a surplus for women in baseball. Finally, we’re seeing an uptick in female players at higher levels of the sport.
The most recent being Elise Berger who has committed to playing baseball at Division III Bard College next fall. It’s a journey she’s been looking forward to since she was young.
According to MLB.com’s Michael Clair, Berger’s love for the game grew over time, but the goal to play college baseball had been with her from the beginning.
“My heart’s always been drawn to baseball,” Berger told Clair. “I’ve always loved playing. But it probably wasn’t until I was 9, 10, 11 that I really started going with it, because when we were nine, that’s when I started kid’s pitch.
Berger became a standout star at Champlain Valley Union High School in Hinesburg, Vt.
“My goal, ever since I was little, has been to play college baseball. It’s always been a dream of mine,” she added. “So to have an opportunity in which that was a reality, that was definitely something I knew I wanted to pursue.”
It turns out, the right-handed pitcher had been a familiar name to Bard since her sophomore year in high school.
With that journey, however, Bard made it very apparent there were a lot of moving parts behind the scenes as well. Those part of the process were just as imperative to her success.
“One thing that’s not shown is a lot of the behind the scenes work,” Berger said. “We have to work a lot harder just to keep up with the guys. Every single woman you see on the National Team are the hardest workers you will ever meet. They are the people who are waking up early to go to lift. Everything they’re doing is to get to play with the guys and get better.”
[MLB.com]
