Nicole Mendes, a 2016 pitcher/outfielder who plays for the Diamond Sports Hotshots – Davis and has committed to Oklahoma, is one of the top talents in club ball today but she’s intriguing in many other ways. Rated as the No. 11 prospect overall in the 2016 Hot 100, Nicole is home schooled and doesn’t play high school ball.

We at Full Count Softball are happy to say that the talented Texan will be interning with us for the foreseeable future and will be contributing frequent articles and other content pieces.

In this introductory write-up, Nichole talks about the recruiting process and gives great insights to younger players on how to effectively navigate the tricky recruiting waters…

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As a young girl who was being recruited, I had no idea what to expect. Looking back now I see how many blessings God has given me.

Although it was confusing and stressful at times I learned so much. I hope by sharing what I believe impacted my recruiting the most throughout my process will help other young girls with their recruiting journey.

I learned so much including how to manage the following five key recruiting areas:

1. getting prepared to be recruited
2. creating and sending proper emails
3. making phone calls which once you come up with the right questions are not so frightening
4. taking unofficial visits and having a specific purpose in mind before you go
5. not setting limits to reach your full potential

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1. Getting Prepared

The first time I was ever seen by a college coach was in the Oklahoma Hall of Fame tournament the summer going into 8^th grade. I was playing right field and contrary to what you might think I was not making any ESPN worthy plays.

Actually I did not get any balls hit to me. Since it was not on the field surely it must have been my outstanding hitting that made a memorable impression on the coach? Hardly, I got on base once that game because of a walk.

Honestly, it was my obvious passion for the game and my athletic ability that separated me from the rest according to the college that recruited me. Throughout the game you saw me hustle on and off the field as well as chattering constantly to my teammates.

When I struck out, my head did not fall and my helmet did not get thrown on the ground—instead I hustled back to the dugout and cheered on the next hitter. My attitude and effort did not change because someone was watching me; in fact, I was unaware that a coach watched me until later that evening.

That was a habit formed before I ever came to that tournament, created through countless hours of work at home and during practice. But having control of my attitude and effort was not the only beneficial habit I had before the recruiting started.

Having the ability to hold a serious, mature conversation with an adult was immensely helpful while talking to coaches. A major part of recruiting is actually talking to the coaches. Occasionally my parents were asked a question but otherwise it was the coaches and I conversing.

Who was the coach watching my game? Turns out it was the one that I eventually called my freshman year to verbally commit to: the head coach of the University of Oklahoma, Patty Gasso!

2. Sending Emails

My first few e-mails were not getting the message I wanted to tell the coach across in an organized way. Struggling with forgetting to put important pieces of information in my e-mail was a constant thing. Luckily, a friend of mine who was ahead of me in the recruiting process showed me how she wrote e-mails.

Consulting with my parents and coach, I came up with a format that made the whole process much easier. Eventually it looked something like this:

Subject: Nicole Mendes 2016

Coach Gasso,

My name is Nicole Mendes I am a 2016 graduate. I am a left-handed pitcher, outfielder, and first baseman. I hit from the left side. I am able to slap and bunt as well. I am on Diamond Sports Hotshots Davis. My coach is Tammie Davis her email is example@gmail.com and her phone number is 777-777-7777. My team will be in (name of tournament) this weekend and I would love for you to watch my games. The schedule is down below. Congratulations on being inducted into the Hall of Fame. I hope to see you this weekend!

Sincerely,

Nicole Mendes

[Address to the fields]

Field 1 at 1:00 pm vs. Team

After the tournament I would send a follow-up e-mail telling the coach how I did as well as how my team did. At the end of the e-mails I would try to add something personal about the coach, a player of theirs, or something the college did. Anything to show that I was paying attention to their program and what was happening at their school.

3. Making Phone Calls

My first call was to the University of Missouri. Since they watched me at a couple of tournaments I was familiar with their program but never talked to the coaches. Riding home from a tournament in Dallas my coach informed me that Head Cooach Ehren Earlywine wanted to talk to me.

Immediately my palms started getting sweaty and I felt the butterflies rising up in my stomach. I was not prepared. Without my coach I am sure my conversation would have turned out differently.

While we were at a gas station she challenged me to think up a few questions to ask. What information did I want to glean from this conversation? After calming myself down I collected my thoughts and called the coach from the middle of nowhere.

The conversation ended up going extremely well. Having a list of questions gave me something to focus on besides the fact that I was talking to a college coach. Although the talk went very well I burst into tears as soon as it was over!

Determined to be more prepared, I made a binder with all the coaches’ information, a list of questions that were important to me and questions the coaches asked me. It was a terrific tool to use and helped me become more comfortable talking to coaches.

Right before I made a call I would pull it out and review the questions. Sometimes I would put it on speaker so my parents could hear the conversation (letting the coaches know I was doing this).

Talking to the coaches helped me get to know them and see if it would be a good fit. I ended up having a better connection with the coaches I talked to more often. Patty Gasso is a great example. Besides softball, topics in our conversations ranged from our faith to her son going off to college and even a serenading session at the end of one call.

We built a relationship that was not superficial and I felt like that is one of the reasons why I chose OU. But there are phone calls that are hard to make no matter how eloquently you speak.

I was becoming more selective in the colleges I was considering and for schools that were no longer contenders I needed to call and let the coaches know that I would not be attending their program. That is hands down the worst feeling ever.

I remember narrowing my choices down. Calling Texas A&M was especially hard because living in Texas you are either an Aggie or a Longhorn. When I was nine years old this girl walked up to me during my first practice with a new team and asked me if I wanted to be her best friend. I replied with what any intelligent nine year old would say: “Uhh… sure.”

But there was a catch, in order to be her friend I had to be an Aggie! Thus began the dream to play softball at A&M with my friend. So when it was time to call Head Coach Jo Evans it broke my heart when she picked up the phone and she greeted me so cheerfully.

Through my tears I told her that I would not be attending A&M. It was difficult giving up on a dream that I had been nurturing for several years but what I wanted now was different from what I wanted several years ago. Making those kind of choices forced me to be mature and weigh the pros and cons. I had no room to make decisions based off of emotion alone.

4. Taking Unofficial Visits

“Unofficial visits.” Those two words alone can cause even the calmest girls’ hearts to race with anticipation. Once again I was in uncharted waters. I went with the proven route of writing down questions I had and asking them when I was on my visit.

Also I asked a former D1 player for some advice about visits. She gave me an answer that I believe everyone should listen to. She took one unofficial visit and committed. Not once did she regret her choice of college but what she did regret was not going on more visits. She told me to go on as many visits as possible.

I took her advice and plunged in with a plan—made by myself and my parents—to visit as many schools as possible. I loved and received an offer from one of the first schools I visited, Houston Baptist University, which has a beautiful campus, high academics, and conservative values but I wanted to go to a larger school.

That summer I played on one of the best club teams in the nation. My pitching, hitting, and fielding excelled. I made a few visits and kept talking to coaches. At Nationals a man approached my coach and said his name was Derek Allister of OnDeck Softball and he ran a recruiting camp. He invited another girl from my team and I to OnDeck in California. Going to that camp was one of the best decisions I made in my recruiting process.

There was 70 plus D1 colleges there watching us girls taking reps. I will never forget when they took the pitchers and had them pitch. You could see all these coaches standing behind home plate pulling out their guns and take notes. It was a once in a lifetime experience.

It is where Coach Ralph Weekly from Tennessee first saw me. We got in touch and I was offered a scholarship. We talked once more over the holidays and set up a date to have me visit during spring break.

During the fall of my freshman year I went on a visit to the University of Missouri. I can honestly say that it ranks as one of my favorite campuses ever. It is a quaint college town nestled in the woods. By 2016 there will be a new softball field. The coaches and I seemed to have a lot in common. It seemed like everything just clicked.

I told my mom as soon as we got in the car this is where I want to go. However, following my plan I continued to go on visits. Spring break of my freshman year found me, my coach, my mom, and my list of questions driving across the country to Tennessee for a few days before continuing on to South Carolina.

Impressed is the only way to describe it. After only two phone calls and two days on campus the Ralph and Karen Weekly managed to make me doubt my firm belief in Oklahoma. I loved them! Coach Ralph was like the cute little grandpa while Coach Karen was like the mom away from home. It surprised me how quickly I connected with the Weeklys.

Once my visit at Tennessee was over we piled in the truck and drove all night to South Carolina. The next morning we went on our visit .The facilities were outstanding. Once I returned home I struggled with decisions. I had one more visit left and while I really liked the coaches I was ready to decide.

My parents and coach, who were a tremendous help in the process, sat down with me and we went over all the pros and cons of each school. I went back and forth with my choice for several weeks.

Finally I made my choice and phone calls were made to schools. The school I chose to attend was the University of Oklahoma. Coach Gasso and I developed a strong bond through our faith that I never experienced with any of the other coaches. The fact that Oklahoma is always a contender to be in the World Series as proven when they went on to win the title against Tennessee later that year was big too. Sooner Assistant Coaches Melyssa Lombardi and Tripp McKay have the same philosophy as I do for pitching and hitting—it was where I needed to be.

5. Not Setting Limits

Never limit yourself; the more versatile a player is the more enticing she is to a coach. You need to be willing to try new things and believe in your athletic ability.

In addition, work on all areas you are interested in playing and be prepared for when the opportunity presents itself. Make the coach say about you, “She is so good I have to put her there.”

Originally I was recruited based on my athleticism and not necessarily as a pitcher so I set out to prove that I can pitch in college. Specifically, that I have what they want from a pitcher at their college. Remember it is not about where you start, it is about where you end.

When I started my recruiting journey I was unsure where my time and energy needed to be focused. But as the process evolved I received advice from parents, mentors, coaches, and players helping me narrow my attention on what I felt were the five most important aspects of recruiting.

It all starts with forming good habits before being recruited, writing emails purposefully with a specific concept in mind, calling college coaches armed with questions, going on visits and having a clear objective of what you want to get out of it and, finally, never setting limits because you never know what the future has in store for you!