Chris Laird, head volleyball coach, probably did not take Colonels softball pitcher Alexandra Austin seriously when she told him she wanted to play volleyball for the first time since her high school days. “In a joking kind of way, she kept saying she was going to try out for the team, so I didn’t know if she really wanted to play or not,” Laird says. “But she came out to our spring practices and showed that she wanted to be on the team.”

Austin is playing volleyball for the first time in two years and says the transition from softball to volleyball is a challenge she is excited to have taken on.

“It was difficult at first, mostly adjusting to the college game, but after a while I got used to it,” Austin says. “I’m really enjoying it now that we’re in season and actually playing games.”

A native of League City, Texas, Austin was a two-sport athlete at Clear Creek High School and says playing volleyball in high school was not as intense as it is in college.

“In high school we took a much more relaxed approach when it came to games and preparing for the other teams,” Austin says. “Here it’s definitely more intense, and it keeps me focused on getting better in my game.”

One of the reasons Austin decided to give volleyball a chance was because she says she missed volleyball too much and wondered if she could still compete at a high level.

“Volleyball was always so fun to me, and I needed to know if I still had it in me,” Austin says.

As a defensive specialist, Austin has seen considerable playing time this year, playing in all 22 games and having 20 service aces.

She says she believes she has earned the playing time because of the amount of dedication she has put into practice.

“You have to have a lot of heart and dedication to be able to come back into a sport,” Austin says. “I didn’t expect to see any playing time, but I guess I had enough desire and worked hard enough that Coach Laird felt I was ready to contribute to the team.”

Austin says serving in volleyball and pitching in softball take the same amount of preparation, but when it comes to pitching, everything relies on her.

“Both aspects are very mental, where in volleyball, as long as I serve and get it over the net, our team can still finish the play,” she says. “But in softball if I throw a bad pitch, it could mess up a lot of things.”

Although some coaches may impede an athlete’s choice to play another sport, Austin says Softball Head Coach Jenny Parsons, who was also a two-sport athlete during her college career, fully endorsed Austin’s choice to play volleyball as well.

“I talked to her about it, and she is 100 percent behind me,” Austin says. “I knew if I played, I’d be in good shape once softball starts.”

Austin says she is dedicated to both softball and volleyball and says anybody can do what she has if he or she puts forth the effort.

“If you want to play two sports, try it,” she says. “It’s definitely tough, especially when you’re carrying 18 hours in school, but all that matters in the end is that you gave your all for something you believed in.