ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SOFTBALLAMERICA.COM
While playing three sports, belonging to the robotics team and juggling her academics in high school, Savannah Fitzpatrick decided on furthering her softball career at Harvard University. The Ohio native and current senior hopes to one day become a lawyer, which is why Harvard stood out to her the most.
Softball America caught up with Fitzpatrick, who plays travel ball for the Beverly Bandits, to talk about her decision to play for the Ivy League school.
Softball America: What made you want to attend Harvard and play softball there?
Savannah Fitzpatrick: I knew I wanted to go to an academically competitive school from the start. My goal was always to use softball as a chance to help me get into a great school. What really sealed the deal was going on a visit in September of my junior year. The culture of the team and the student body in general was something that I immediately felt I belonged to. The girls on the team reminded me of friends from back home and that was really comforting to me, knowing that Harvard is a 12-hour drive and I'll be pretty far from home.
SA: What was your recruiting process like? Did you reach out to Harvard or did Harvard find you?
SF: I reached out to them. I had been sending them emails for a while until they were able to talk to my travel ball coach. After that, I went to a couple camps that were held in Colorado and California, and I was able to introduce myself to the coaches and talk about my skills as a student and a player.
SA: Was it stressful for you to balance keeping your grades up while playing softball and other sports during your recruiting process?
SF: Yes and no. School has always been pretty easy to keep up. The bigger stressor was high school sports. Finding time to make sure I got the necessary softball work in was difficult once I added in practice times for golf and basketball on top of my homework and softball practice time.
SA: How has playing travel and high school ball shaped you into the player you are today?
SF: Travel ball allowed me to put myself in a position where there was always something greater to strive for. I met a lot of really great teammates and opponents as well, who have shown me how to be a great teammate and have taught me how to know the game better. High school ball gave me the opportunity to learn from my classmates and teammates' dynamic, and helped me grow my softball IQ by learning the game from new positions.
SA: Do you have an idea of what you want to major in at Harvard?
SF: I want to concentrate on psychology. I wish to go to law school after I graduate. Harvard doesn’t have an undergrad law program, so I wanted to choose something that I was extremely interested in. Having taken a couple psych courses in high school, I know I love it.
SA: Is there anything else you want to accomplish in high school and travel ball before you leave for Harvard?
SF: For high school, there are a couple records I was close to breaking my sophomore year, and my goal is to break those this year. As for travel ball, I’m looking forward to competing with my girls to win a national championship.
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