[Softball] Senior Day - Madelyn Thompson
Among many things, the COVID-19 pandemic prematurely ended the athletic careers of the majority of the St. Ambrose spring sport seniors.
Through no fault of their own, these seniors had their final seasons, and collegiate careers, shortened. Yet this does not diminish in any way their contributions to St. Ambrose University and the Athletic Department.
Some of these seniors were on the verge of postseason play, with sights set on competing for National Titles. Others were just getting their final seasons started. And still others never had a chance to compete this spring.
While COVID-19 brought a close to the SAU athletic careers of these seniors, it also robbed the St. Ambrose Athletic Department the opportunity to thank them for their contributions on the playing field, in the classroom and in the community.
Over the next several weeks, we will share stories on each of these seniors. In a way, this will be the Senior Day we were never able to give them.
These are our Seniors of 2020.
| Hometown: Ottawa, Ill. | High School: Marquette Academy |
| Parents: Robert and Tanya Thompson | Major: History with minors in Political Science, Classical Studies, Museum Studies, and Art History |
| In her words: "My time at Ambrose brought me some of my closest friends and gave me some of the best memories of my life. Being a member of the softball team played a major role in this experience. I learned how to be a better player, teammate, and person through this sport and I will be forever grateful to the people who helped me along the way. A big thank you to my family, professors, coaches, teammates, friends, and all the other fellow bees who helped make my Ambrose experience so incredibly special for me." |
As a history major, Madelyn Thompson has an interesting perspective on the COVID-19 pandemic that ended her collegiate softball career just 24 games into her senior season.
Pictured below, left to right: Back - John (brother), Robert (dad), Aidan (brother); Front - Cate (sister), Mackinnley (brother), Tanya (mom), Madelyn
"I think what's going on (with the pandemic), in the moment, it sucks. But looking back, it will be interesting to think that I was in the middle of all this craziness. It will be something to look back on and say I was part of it all. I learned a lot, some hard facts of life, and I can't always control things."
A self-described "old soul," Madelyn earned minors in Political Science, Classical Studies, Museum Studies and Art History to go along with her History degree.
"I've always been interested in older things. I like to see how past people lived and I think that affects how you live. I've just been fascinated about past people and cultures. I like to see how things progress through time. At Ambrose, I was able to dig deeper into things and gain difference prospectives. I had a really great experience with the history department at Ambrose."
Her learning experience at St. Ambrose carried over to the softball field, where the premature end to the season was painful for all the Bees, but especially so for Madelyn, the lone member of her class the last two seasons.
"It was hard because I've been my whole class the last two years. Being the only senior, there was no one to go to and say 'this really sucks.' No one shares the same grief I do. My teammates were supportive but it's hard for them to understand exactly what you're going through."
Madelyn went through a lot in her collegiate softball career. She batted .154 (2-for-13) in limited action as a freshman and even while taking over the primary catching duties as a sophomore, she hit just .269 that year. Then things started to click.
"My mentality changed after my sophomore year. It was a reality check at Ambrose. I had started in the past but I had to re-learn the fundamentals of catching. It took a lot of time and work. And hitting wise, I hadn't been exposed to that level of pitching before."
After collecting 12 RBIs and nine extra-base hits over her first two seasons, she became a middle-of-the-order force for the Bees. As a junior, Madelyn batted .365 with 13 doubles, two triples and six home runs. She drove in a team-leading 36 runs in earning first team all-conference honors.
She was off to an even better start in 2020, hitting .411 with five doubles, a pair of homers and a team-best 18 RBIs before the season was canceled after just 24 games.
Madelyn credits her improvement, which included throwing out 18 potential base stealers over the last two years, to hard work and confidence.
"After my sophomore year, I sat down and said this is what I need to work on. This is what the coach and team need me to be. And I went to work. I listened to what the coaches were saying, and my confidence started building up more. Our assistant coach, Brittany Hay, helped a lot with building my confidence."
The work she put in and the confidence she built turned Madelyn into one of the top catchers in the NAIA.