After being dragged onto a big field, a nervous seven-year-old girl stands in the middle, curious about trying a new sport: softball. Already having attempted tennis and golf, the young girl runs around trying to figure out the new and overwhelming rules of the ball game. As the heavy, intimidating balls are thrown towards her, she runs in the opposite direction, instead of attempting to catch them. Now, after nine years of dedication, that same little girl has committed to the application process to play softball for Harvard University.
On September 1, the day colleges may extend official recruitment offers to junior student athletes, junior Jadyn M. received three calls from three universities: Brown University, the University of Utah, and Harvard University. The following day, Jadyn verbally accepted her offer to Harvard University, and will be the first in her family to attend an Ivy League school. “It was really exciting. I was obviously nervous the whole night, I’ve just been waiting for this moment my whole life,” she said.

Jadyn has been playing softball for over nine years. From a young age, Jadyn has appreciated the team aspect of the sport. She said, “When you’re young, you’re trying to make a lot of friends, and I found a lot of friends through this sport, which I’m grateful for. And obviously, it opens up a lot of opportunities for college.”
Through remaining committed to attending weekly practices and tournaments, Jadyn worked on developing her pitch speed and skills. She estimated she practices around 17 hours per week through attending softball practices and workouts. By the age of 13, Jadyn began considering playing at the collegiate level for softball. Through traveling around the country for her club team, Athletics Mercado Academy, colleges of all sizes began noticing Jadyn’s known pitch versatility. Even her coach, Rick Hovermale, a 16U coach for Athletics Mercado Academy, noticed her talents early on. He said, “The first time I [saw] Jadyn actually play softball, it was super impressive, as hard as she threw for her size at the time.”
However, Jadyn has faced challenges throughout her softball career. Last year, Jadyn struggled with the “yips,” a term referring to involuntary loss of typical skills and ability due to nervousness, leading to poor performance in games. “[There] was a lot of pressure of trying to get into school, pressure of just trying to prove yourself,” she said. “I’m supposed to be this really great athlete, so if I make a mistake, I just weighed every pitch so heavily.”
From a coach’s perspective, Coach Rick reflected on this obstacle for Jadyn. “I think it was really good for her to go through [that challenge] now, because what it’ll do for her in her future is going to be huge, because nothing is going to be too big for her anymore in this game, or even in life, when she went through a struggle like that,” he said.
Jadyn added, “That was probably the hardest experience I’ve ever had… You can’t really control what your body or mind’s thinking… I’m most proud of how I got out of that.”

Jadyn has two more seasons left with the Westridge Varsity Softball team, but she has already left a mark on Westridge softball, leading to Prep League wins as a freshman and sophomore. Pip d.-C. ’27, a teammate and friend to Jadyn, shared the uplifting and thoughtful spirit Jadyn constantly brought to the Westridge varsity softball team. “She is the most humble person I know… Even after she would pitch the greatest games, she would always be asking about my dad or sister,” she said.

Coach Rick Hovermale added, “Not even just the softball player, but the person helping teammates, keeping it light in the dugout, and making sure girls are in a good place… If you know Jadyn, you know how good of a person she is.”
Moving forward, Jadyn looks forward to the academic side of Harvard and getting to know her new team and school. She also mentioned, “Their games are broadcasted on ESPN, so that will be cool too.”
Coach Rick Hovermale also highlighted Jadyn’s future ability to carry Harvard to softball regional contenders every year. “She’s going to get to do what she loves doing while going to a school that she’s dreamed about going to,” Coach Rick Hovermale said. “Ultimately, she’s going to live out her dream, which I think is freaking awesome.”