Patriot will
play softball
By JAY W. BENNETT
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Parkersburg South senior Genna Trippett will continue her softball career by playing for the Golden Bears of WVU Tech.
PARKERSBURG - Genna Trippett wanted a chance to play her favorite sport in college.
The Parkersburg South senior made her dream a reality earlier this month when she agreed to continue her softball career and be a student-athlete for the Golden Bears of WVU Tech.
Currently a member of the Patriot basketball team, where she soon will be a two-year letterwinner, Trippett said she plans to major in civil engineering.
Last season, Trippett was one of the Mid-Ohio Valley's top sluggers, finishing tied for third in home runs with a half dozen while adding three doubles and 16 runs-batted-in.
"I was thinking about OVU (Ohio Valley University), but then I just completely changed my mind, basically," said Trippett, who had a 4.0 GPA this past nine weeks and has a near 3.8 cumulative GPA.
"When I went there (WVU Tech) I was talking to the softball players and I liked the program. Talking to them wanted to make me go there and play softball."
Trippett will be looking to garner her fourth varsity letter for the Patriots of head coach Jennifer Null this spring. In her time as a Patriot, Trippett has had two main positions - first base and catcher.
"She (WVU Tech head coach Karin Gadberry) told me that she has a senior at catcher right now and I would play first base my first year," said Trippett, who is excited about the chance to start her freshman season for the Golden Bears.
The Patriot senior said she felt her defensive skills behind the plate were her best attributes of being a catcher.
However, Trippett understands she still has things to improve on not only this year, but also down the road.
"Mainly on my hitting," said Trippett, who has been spending time with family in Arizona during the holiday break. "I want to work on my hitting and become more consistent.
"That's what I want to work on. Then hopefully some of my catching skills will be more improved."
After her senior year is over at PSHS, Trippett said she plans to play travel softball this summer for the TNT Explosion.
Trippett said she got on the WVU Tech radar after going to a college showcase in Beckley earlier this year.
"I've always wanted to play college softball," she added. "I wanted to go big like Division I, but going bigger is not always the better thing. I just decided to go to a better school that would help my education and get the chance to play softball. It didn't matter to me where I went."
As far as the ultimate goal this year in softball, Trippett just wants to help the Patriots reach the final four and the state tournament to give themselves a chance to go out as champions.
"I'm excited, but then again I'm not excited," Trippett admitted about the prospects of leaving high school and heading off to college. "I'm kind of ready for it and ready to experience something new."
