Along with team, Bloomington native feels right at home as Hoosiers win 1st games of season at IU Softball Field

On Sunday, the Hoosiers (15-13) wrapped up the Hoosier Classic with a 9-1 win in five innings against the University of Illinois-Chicago.

The win marked the first time this season the Hoosiers have swept an entire weekend.
Freshman Lora Olson got the win, pitching all five innings and allowing just five hits. Senior Samantha Berenter led the bats with 2-for-3 with three RBI.

Freshman Brianna Meyer and sophomore Jenna Abraham each collected two RBI, and juniors Amanda Wagner and Samantha Heyman each shared one.

Wagner recorded her fourth home run of the season in the win as well.

This weekend’s tournament marked the first weekend the Hoosiers were able to play in front of their local fans. After five weekends of travel to away tournaments, the Hoosiers made the 10-minute drive to the IU Softball Field for
competition.

For the rest of the IU softball team, that drive was a relaxing break from flight plans and jet lag. For junior Kelsey Brannon, that drive was just like home.

Brannon, a walk-on outfielder from Bloomington, said the opportunity to play at home in front of her family is an opportunity that never gets old.

“It’s definitely just nice because last year we started developing a good local fan base with our success going into postseason,” Brannon said. “It will really be fun, getting the community back to our games. Especially my family: My family has come to a lot of the trips, but now my grandparents will get
to come.”

Brannon said the softball atmosphere has always been present in her household. Her father, her main inspiration and coach, has been there helping her with her game since she first picked up a ball.

“He has always been my coach on all my traveling teams and my recreation league teams,” Brannon said. “Him seeing me play has always been really important to me. He played baseball, so at least he had that background coming in.”

The notion of staying in Bloomington and playing softball for the Hoosiers had always teased the mind of a young Brannon. It wasn’t until IU Softball Coach Michelle Gardner offered her a walk-on position her senior year at Bloomington High School North that she knew she would actually complete that dream, she said.

“When I was younger, I always thought it would be the coolest thing to come and play for IU,” Brannon said. “Originally I wasn’t going here, then after my senior year I came to coach’s camp and she offered me a walk-on spot. I thought maybe I’d want a smaller school for academic reasons, and I just wasn’t a big-college person, but I just couldn’t pass this up. I definitely wanted to stay.”

Gardner attributes much of the work ethic of the softball team in its entirety to Brannon’s work ethic.

“She has helped us with whatever we have asked of her,” Gardner said. “She has a great work ethic, and she is a pleasure to be around. The other girls feed off of her work ethic.”

Being a walk-on, Brannon said she has seen no difference in the importance of hard work for the good of the team. She said it doesn’t matter if you are a walk-on or a scholarship athlete — you are still putting in the same amount of work.

“Everybody has to fight for a position anyways,” Brannon said. “With my personal work ethic, it really fits me that I was able to do that.”

During her career at IU, Brannon has seen some changes in her role with
the team.

Her freshman year, she played in 19 games and had one hit in three at-bats. Her sophomore year, she played in 37 games primarily as a pinch runner and had just one at-bat.

This year, she has played in 20 of the Hoosiers’ 28 games this season. She has recorded a .275 batting average, knocking in four RBI on 40 at-bats.

“All summer I worked with my old travel ball coach, and we hit the entire time,” Brannon said. “It was like a perfect summer. I just kept working really hard and continued that work into this season.”

Brannon is the only player on the team from Bloomington.

Prior to away tournaments, the rest of the Indiana softball team boards the plane and heads away from campus.

Brannon boards the plane and heads away from her childhood home.

“It’s weird playing college ball at home, seeing the stuff I’ve seen all my life and playing ball just down the street from where I started my career,” Brannon said. “It makes it seem different for sure.”