Wamego's Pierson shares secret to success in first year with Creighton softball

WAMEGO (KSNT) - Former Wamego shortstop Ashten Pierson wasted no time putting herself on the map at the DI level.

Pierson, who just wrapped up her first season with Creighton softball, hauled in the Big East Defensive Player of the Year award, becoming to first freshman to ever do so. 27 News caught up with the rising sophomore, who's back home in Wamego for the summer.

When asked about her year-one success, Pierson attributed it to her mentality.

"A lot of freshmen come in and they don't expect to see as much failure as they do," Pierson said. "And I think I really took that into my mind and just embraced the failure part of it. And I think that's why I was so successful this year."

Coming off a solid freshman campaign that featured a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage on 38 outs and five double plays, Pierson's not surprised she's the first freshman to earn the award, though for a different reason. She says it can be difficult to stay positive through an entire year of high-level softball, especially early on.

The former Wamego standout says she picked up her confidence and competitive drive from her high school coaches, both basketball and softball. In 2023, her senior season, Pierson helped lead the Red Raiders to a 4A state softball title, earning 4A player of the year honors along the way.

"There was never a time that nobody believed in me," Pierson said. "And if there was, I was just going to go prove them wrong."

Her Creighton team fell one game shy of winning its first-ever Big East title in 2024, losing to Villanova in the conference championship. Pierson says she's "definitely going to have a chip on her shoulder," until the Blue Jays win a Big East championship.