From UE Athletics:
There is an old adage that says it is not how you start, it is how you finish. That is definitely true with Purple Aces softball player Eryn Gould. Her athletic abilities took some time to evolve, but once she hit her stride, things really came together.
In her final season at Mt. Carmel High School in Mt. Carmel, Ill., Gould batted .612 while slugging 1.403 on her way to a spot on the 2017 Illinois Coaches Association Softball Class 2A All-State First Team. While you would expect someone with those numbers and accolades to have a slew of college offers, Gould had just two options – the University of Evansville and Wabash Valley College.
"My abilities did not really blossom until late in my high school career – I really found my work ethic and put it together," Gould explained. "Evansville was my top choice and I was probably after Coach (Mat) Mundell more than anything. I really worked hard, went to camps and emailed as much as I was permitted. When I finally received the offer, I called Coach back and accepted just a few minutes later after talking to my parents."
Staying close to home was important to Gould, who enjoys the support of her family. Their encouragement made a true difference in her career, especially in assisting her with practicing on a year-round basis.
"During the offseason before my freshman year, I really concentrated on bulking up and getting stronger with intense weight lifting," Gould said in regards to her training. "My parents love throwing batting practice to me. There is an old mushroom plant that we used with a nice net and batting cage. There were rafters right above the top of the net; sometimes balls would ricochet and hit my parents, but they took it pretty well!"
Entering her first season in college, Gould knew what was ahead. She had a full understanding that the speed of the game would be much faster and that she would need to make adjustments to be successful at the next level. All of her hard work paid off during her first fall season. Facing Indiana University in her first action of the fall, she started at catcher and helped her team take a 2-0 win. She credits that experience with preparing her for the regular season.
"That experience was intense, but it was good to see how fast the game was," Gould recalled. "I worked even harder leading up to the regular season and knew what I had to do."
Knowing what you have to do, then actually being able to do it are usually two totally different things. Not for Gould. All of her hard work paid off with one of the best freshman season the University of Evansville softball program has ever seen. She batted .377 on the season while posting 13 doubles, 28 runs, 4 home runs and 17 RBI. All of those around the Missouri Valley Conference who did not realize the abilities that Gould had were certainly aware now. She was rewarded by being named the conference Freshman of the Year while garnering All-MVC First Team accolades.
"That meant the whole world – I only had two offers out of high school so I always played with a chip on my shoulder," Gould exclaimed. "Evansville was always my first choice no matter what, but I wanted to show the coaches in the MVC who did not offer me what they were missing out on. When I found out about the Freshman of the Year award, I was sitting at home and Coach Mundell called me with the news. I thanked him and went to my parents' room and was overcome with emotion, it meant so much."
"I do not think my parents have missed a single game that I have played. One of them or both is at each one, home or away. My brother just graduated high school, so they worked to split everything up so at least one of them was there for each of us."
Gould's sophomore season culminated in another spot on the All-MVC First Team and excitement was very high coming into her third campaign with the Aces. One of eight juniors on the squad, she feels like their chemistry was really coming together and that they were evolving into team leaders. The season got off to a nice start with UE defeating Miami Ohio and Louisiana Tech, both coming off of conference championships. In the final weekend of non-conference play, the Aces knocked off Big Ten foe Illinois by a 9-1 final before shutting out Purdue Fort Wayne, 11-0, in the home opener. Then things changed.
"Honestly – I truly believed this was going to be our season. I do not know what it was. Every year we have had good chemistry – my class was always very young. We were a large class, us maturing as players and leaders helped," Gould said. "Our bats were really coming alive and we were preparing to open conference play. At our final practice, things just had an eerie feeling. We were all expecting something to happen. It was just a tense day, but our team scrimmaged and did our best to have fun."
Unfortunately for Gould and her team, the announcement they were expecting finally came. The remainder of their season was cancelled due to the COVID19 pandemic.
"We had weights after practice and the coaches hung around. I had a dentist appointment back home, so I left campus right away," she explained. "I did not learn of the news until I was in the waiting room at the dentist. I was tearing up as the dentist and the technician asked me about it."
At the time, there were so many unknowns but Gould has worked to adjust to the situation just as everyone else has. Usually having access to the facilities that UE offers on campus, Gould and her teammates had to do their best to maintain their workouts the best they can.
"It has been weird doing some modified home workouts. Our strength coach – Fernando (Garcia-Villegas) gave us some ideas such as filling up backpacks and using them as dumbbells while doing other exercises like lunges and squats," Gould added. "I have been doing a ton of running around the house. With schoolwork, we have all adjusted to the online lectures."
In May, UE was scheduled to host the conference championship. While scheduling is still ongoing, there is a chance that Cooper Stadium will be the site of the 2021 tournament. Gould says that would give her team extra motivation moving forward.
"I think next year we are going to have amazing team chemistry – hopefully we will be as good and better than we were this year," Gould said. "I cannot think of a better way to finish next season – winning an MVC championship at Cooper Stadium."
Eryn Gould