ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SOFTBALLAMERICA.COM
Like most players going through the college softball recruiting process, Madi Elish wanted to find the perfect school to remind her of home in Indiana. When she visited the University of Arizona for the first time, she was instantly thrown into a family atmosphere and saw her future as a Wildcat.
“What stuck out the most about Arizona was with no doubt the coaching staff,” Elish said. “Obviously, Indiana is pretty far from Arizona, but when I’m there I feel like it’s my second home and that’s all because of the coaches.”
If the name Elish sounds familiar to you, that's because it is. Madi’s older sister, Miranda, had an outstanding college softball career that just recently ended at the University of Texas. With some demanding expectations to play as well as her sister, Madi wanted to pave her own path and make it to the college level all on her own.
“My sister wasn’t involved in my recruiting process at all,” Elish said. “Ever since I was younger, I have wanted to play college softball and I am happy my dreams are coming true.”
Elish, on the other hand, wouldn't be living out this dream if it wasn’t for the support system she built for herself over the years. She attributes a lot of her success and ability to get recruited from playing on her travel team, the Orange County Batbusters.
“I am coached by Mike Stith, who is so knowledgeable of the game and is someone who pushes their players to be the best player and person they can be,” Elish said.
“Being able to play with and against the top girls in the country is such a privilege and pushes me to want to work harder and harder.”
The grind doesn’t stop for Elish when she isn’t playing travel or high school ball. After her junior season with Crown Point High School was canceled due to COVID-19, she did everything in her power to stay in shape and made sure her pitching skills didn’t suffer, especially since someone very close to her happens to be her pitching coach.
“With my dad being my pitching coach, it’s really convenient because he really makes sure I stay on top of my game and pushes me to keep working with everything going on,” Elish said. “I’ve been working out and lifting, so I feel like, overall, I have been staying healthy and I am going to keep working. With high school and travel (softball) coming up again, I need to make sure I am on top of my game.”
As Elish begins to say her goodbyes to travel and high school ball, she is looking forward to learning the dynamics of a new team. After she signed with Arizona in November, she had the opportunity to meet some of her new teammates.
“I have met two other signees,” Elish said. “We all get along super well and are super excited to play with each other next year. As for the upperclassmen, I met the team on my official visit last year. I can’t wait to play with all of them.”
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