Seymour senior Grace Meyer plans to continue her high school softball career by playing for Marian University in Indianapolis.
“I chose Marian because it’s close to home, but it’s still a distance, and I can go out and do new things. It’s also in a city (Indianapolis) which is new,” she said. “And, their softball program is really, really good.
“They’ve had really good success over the years. I already know some of the girls and I’m really close with them. I just felt it was a great place to be.”
Savannah Harweger, a graduate of Trinity Lutheran, is a current member of the Knights’ softball team, and Logan Personett, a graduate of Seymour, played softball for four years at Marian.
Scott Fleming is the head coach of the Knights, who are currently 32-10 this season.
Fleming is in his 18th year as head coach at Marian and led the squad into the NAIA World Series for four straight years (2016-19). The team has averaged more than 50 wins each season during that span. Personett played in two of those World Series.
“We’re striving to win a national championship,” Fleming said.
The Knights were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation in NAIA polls during a couple of those seasons.
“Obviously we’re looking at really good players, good kids and really good students,” Fleming said. “Grace certainly fits all those categories. She comes from a really good family.
“When I first started watching her I was impressed with her play, especially her hitting. That probably stood out more to me. She’s a really competitive kid. I know she’s a versatile player. She is a really good basketball player, somebody that scored over 1,000 points.
“We like to recruit multiple-sport athletes. I’m excited to get her up there. I feel she’ll fit in great with Marian University and our team. I think she’ll be a great addition.”
But playing time won’t come on a platter for Meyer as she will have to earn it, Fleming said.
“We tell the kids everybody has an opportunity,” he said. “It’s up to the kids to take that opportunity and make the most out of it. She is someone that can definitely help our team and our program.
“She certainly has the ability, the competitiveness and the drive to really contribute for us. We kind of see her as catching some. She plays a little outfield in travel ball. I think she could probably play a corner spot as well. A lot of times our pitchers don’t hit, so we use a DP (designated player) for them. That’s a role she could possibly do as well.”
Meyer played both softball and basketball at SHS, enjoying being on the diamond a little bit more than the hardwood.
“Softball has definitely been my favorite sport for a while, but once I got into high school I realized that I really enjoyed basketball a lot more, so it’s definitely hard leaving that part behind but I’ll definitely be back to watch games,” she said.
“I loved that the girls are all super nice and they all make sure that everyone feels welcome,” she said of her soft ball experiences at Seymour.
“Jerry (Burton, the Owls’ head softball coach) makes sure seniors and juniors get recognized. Also, we’re great athletes and we all like to win, we’re really competitive. I’m really competitive so I just like being with them and getting to play with them. It’s really fun.”
Meyer enjoys batting, and she thinks she can be a good hitter in the middle of the lineup at the collegiate level.
Burton, her high school coach said Meyer is a very good hitter.
“Her power has come a long ways, and Grace runs extremely well,” he said. “A lot of times I don’t run for her because she is very quick.”
Meyer usually plays catcher or in the outfield, but with a lack of depth this season, she’s spending a lot of her time on defense playing shortstop. The Owls have played a strong schedule so far this season.
“We always make sure we play competitive teams and make sure we get that experience playing tough competition, and seeing different types of pitching, different types of defense, and the teams we play from up north have a lot of players that continue playing in college,” Meyer said. “It’s nice to have competitive games.”
Even though last spring’s high school season was canceled because of COVID-19, Meyer said she was able to play more than 40 games of travel ball last summer.
“The first year Grace came in as a freshman and went all the way through,” Burton said. “She has been a big part of this team. She is a very versatile player. It’s not often that you’ll see a catcher, who has caught for us for three years, go play shortstop and play as well as she’s been playing. She’s got a very strong arm.
“She’s very quick behind the plate, understands the game well, and does an excellent job. She is really going to be missed on the softball team.”
Marian is a member of the Crossroads Conference with Indiana Wesleyan, Taylor, Huntington, Bethel, Grace, Goshen and St. Francis from Indiana, plus Spring Arbor, Michigan, and Mount Vernon Nazarene in Ohio.