HELENA — After a more than impressive junior season (21-5 overall, 14-0 in Western AA), with the Capital Bruins softball team, it's no surprise that senior pitcher Nyeala Herndon peaked the interest of the University of Montana softball program.
"I'm so I started kind of late. It really started when I, in January of this year, I went up for the winter Griz camp. And then after that, I started emailing a couple of coaches and I went to go play on this team in Washington (Washington Ladyhawks), that's at like a higher level than most travel teams that are in Montana. And so then after that I got in touch with a few other colleges, and more in touch with the coaches at University of Montana. And we finally had the official visit two weeks ago. And that's when I decided to commit," Herndon said.
For Herndan, being a part of the Griz community was always a dream.
"“I really loved the coaches and the team dynamic there. It felt like a family and I wanted to be a part of it. And then, ever since I was little, I've always wanted to go to UM. And since I found out they had a softball team, it's been an even bigger dream," she said.
During her junior season she brokeCapital High records with 15 pitching wins, 19 starts, 151 strikeouts, and four complete game shutouts. She thanks her mom for starting her on her journey towards success.
"A lot of it was my mom. So she started playing when she was a teenager. She played slow pitch and Townsend because he didn't have fast pitch, but she's the one that threw me into it when I was little, and it's just been awesome,” she said.
Her goals for her upcoming senior season are not record-based.
"I just mostly want to have fun. I feel like that's a big part of it," the pitcher said. But just because she's already committed doesn't mean she's going to slack off during her senior season. " I'm gonna get in the gym more often, and try and work on specific things to fine tune everything."
