This is the first piece in a multi-part series on Hillsdale College student-athletes in spring sports that lost their senior season in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and chose to take advantage of the extra eligibility granted by the NCAA waiver after the cancellation of the 2020 spring season to return to Hillsdale for an additional year. Look for more entries in the series on Wednesdays throughout the next two months.
For Hillsdale shortstop Sam Catron, a bit of rest and an extra year of eligibility was just what she needed. After a shoulder surgery during her freshman year, she's spent the last three seasons rehabbing and trying to get back to the player she was early in her career. This year, she's healthier than she's been since the injury and hoping to have her best season yet.
"I had surgery my freshman year here at Hillsdale and they told me I was going to be out for a year," she said. "Then I did all of my therapy and at my six-month checkup they told me that I looked great and could try to come back for my sophomore season. I rushed everything and that kind of messed everything up again."
She spent her sophomore year as the Chargers' designated hitter, which she said she enjoyed, but with the continued maintenance of her shoulder, she missed contributing defensively to her team's efforts. Even into her senior year, during the beginning of the 2020 season, she still occasionally struggled to play a full game due to her shoulder.
"There were a couple games I had to come out last February and I would either just hit the next game or just rest," she said. "I think the rest has helped and will give me a lot more playing time and opportunities to help the team defensively."
While missing a season isn't unfamiliar to Catron, receiving the news in March that her senior season had been cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic was still difficult to hear.
"I was devastated. I've been playing sports my entire life, not just softball. It's a part of me and to have that stripped away was kind of hard to accept," she said. "But I knew God had a greater plan and I just felt like it wasn't the end."
When head coach Kyle Gross approached Catron with the idea of using her extra year of eligibility, that affirmed her feeling that there was still more to come, but she was too overwhelmed to consider the option at the time. Not only did she lose her senior season, but she also had a canceled internship.
"I just couldn't deal with it at that time. There was so much going on and I didn't have time to think about that," she said. "But as time progressed, obviously in quarantine I had a lot of time to think and process and pray."
Between softball, school, internships, and figuring out her future career, she had a lot to consider.
"I didn't really know what was going to happen. Eventually I do want to get into sports administration in athletics either for a college or eventually in the MLB or NFL, but at that time I had no idea what was going on," she said.
Catron (left) with Charger teammate Elaine Townley during a game in Florida in March.
Catron found herself leaning on her faith. She knew a fifth year as a Charger was an option, but she wasn't sure if it would work out. She thought she would just finish out her spring semester online, as a regular student, and graduate in May. But as she began to think and pray about it, she found new opportunities.
"I was just like, 'God, if this is what I'm supposed to do, financially and academically it will work out for me to double major,'" she said. "And all of that did, so I took that as a sign like, 'Okay, you can come back.'"
Catron returned to campus this fall and is now pursuing a second major in sport management which will accompany the exercise science major she already completed.
"I want to make every day count and invest in the people here, not just for myself but for others," she said. "I'm a fifth year and I've experienced a lot; I know what it's like to be a student-athlete here. I want to be able to give back to my teammates and friends."
Now, Catron said she's more involved in Athletes InterVarsity -- an on-campus student Christian ministry -- and building stronger relationships with her teammates, especially the five new freshmen.
"They've been amazing and such a blessing in my life," she said. "I've gotten to know teammates more and grow deeper relationships with them that I thought I'd never have to opportunity to do."
Outside of her team, Catron said she's still trying to meet new people and prepare for the future.
"I'm just trying to get to know as many different people as I can and try to make a difference. School is important, and you're here for the education, but the relationships are what lasts," she said. "I'm also investing in myself more and building myself as a leader and preparing for the next phase of life."
Written by Calli Townsend
Photos by Camryn Olson