Yesterday we profiled the quartet of Iowa players – soph. P/1B Morgan Christner, jr. 2B/OF Riley Hale, jr. OF Kori Mesecher and soph. 3B Alyssa Wiebel – who have decided to cross state lines and head to the Land of Lincoln to play for the Illinois State Redbirds and Hall of Fame Coach Melinda Fischer, who has close to 1,000 wins in her 30 year history.

All but Alyssa plays for the Southeast Iowa Hawks—she plays for Iowa Premier Gold—so the two juniors and two sophomores know each other well.

Read about the players’ accomplishments by clicking here

Today, we ask the four players their thoughts about eventually playing at ISU together and for a legendary coach as well as what it’s like being a softball player from Iowa…

 

*****

 

StudentSportsSoftball.com: So you four are going together… was this a primary goal or did it just work out that way?

Kori:  I can’t say it was a primary goal, but I’m not surprised it worked out that way.  Before we became teammates on the SEI Hawks, Riley, Morgan, and I started our club careers playing against each other.  Before I knew them personally, I remember noticing that they were amongst the players that stood out on opposing teams that if you wanted to win, you had to get past them.  The three of us attended several different camps together.  ISU was that one place that had the camp environment and coaching staff that both challenged you, yet made you feel really at home and valued.  We share a lot of the same values and work ethic and I think we were all looking for a school that was helpful and supportive.  It was just a great fit for all of us.

Morgan:  No, it was not a goal of mine to go to the same college as my travel ball teammates.  It is, however, a huge bonus and something I am greatly looking forward to.

Riley:  No, it wasn’t a goal, but it is going to be great to experience playing with them at the next level.  They are great players and I have respected their games for so long.  I’m glad that they will be experiencing this with me.

 

SSS.com: You’re going to play for a Hall of Fame coach… what does that mean to you and how did it factor into the equation?

Riley:  Coach Fischer has a great personality and I really enjoy her and the ISU coaching staff’s approach to teaching.  Coach Fischer has a lot of experience and I really respect her as well as her staff’s knowledge of the game and their coaching techniques.  It will be a privilege to play for her and the university.

Morgan:  Playing for a Hall of Fame coach will be a huge honor.   One of the biggest reasons I chose to play for ISU is Coach Fischer’s personality and positive energy.  I’m very excited. Coach Fischer is an awesome coach.

Kori:  It will be an honor to play for someone who is so well respected in the softball community.  I can’t say enough about Coach Fischer.  It is a dream come true to be part of her softball program.  Her success and accomplishments in this sport as well as her personality were huge in my decision to commit to ISU.  She will have over 1,000 career wins when my opportunity comes to join her team.  I’m beyond excited to learn from her and take in the whole softball and college experience.

Alyssa: The fact that I’m going to be playing for a Hall of Fame coach is awesome. Coach Fischer is a highly respected softball coach and having someone like that as my future coach is a great honor. I can’t wait to be coached by her and to learn from her and the rest of the ISU staff. With her being the head coach, it made my decision much easier to pick Illinois State because I knew I would be playing for one of the best coaches in the country.

 

SSS.com: Iowa is often overlooked because the high school season overlaps with prime club ball time and exposure… what does this mean to you as far as representing Iowa softball?

Morgan:  The fact that ISU is now recruiting girls from Iowa is a big deal.  The door has now been opened for the up and coming players.  My club coach, Greg Hale, played a huge factor in getting girls from all over the state of Iowa looked at.  I owe him a big thanks.

Kori:  It means that I feel fortunate to be among a lot of great talent representing Iowa.  Although our high school season is played in the summer, we still have access to the fall exposure tourneys. I will continue to work hard to let the younger players know that it’s possible to take this sport as far as you want to take it if you put in the effort.

Riley:  We all three really enjoy playing for our communities and our schools.  We have some great teammates and coaches and really enjoy our Iowa High School season.  We want to all three bring the championship trophy back to our schools.  We understand it is very difficult to get discovered but we want represent Southeast Iowa and Iowa in general by working really hard to show people that we can play too.

Alyssa: Iowa players definitely have a disadvantage when it comes to spring recruiting. But the fact that we are recruited shows that it can be done through hard work and attending fall showcases. I owe a lot to my Iowa Premier Gold coach Greg Dickel. He got my team into great tournaments with lots of college exposure. We represent Iowa very well by showing that we can play at the same level as anyone else in the country.

 

SSS.com: Do you think the growing numbers of Iowa players playing at the college level and committing at your age and signing means the talent is getting better or is it simply that there’s more exposure and opportunities now than before?  Or both?

Kori:  I would say both.   I believe the word is getting out that there is a lot of talent throughout the state.  Our club coach has been a huge supporter and has dedicated a lot of time getting our profiles out there for coaches to see.  Because of the overlapping of the high school and prime club ball tourneys, Iowa players have to have as many things working for them as possible.  The talent appears to be getting better because we know we have to work extra hard to get to the level we need to be at to get our names respected.  Preparation is a year around thing if you want to advance.  Southeast Iowa has two players from the 2011 class that have represented their respective D1 and D2 teams very well.  Those two players were an inspiration to me and to many others in our area.

Riley:  There have always been great players in Iowa.  There are more and more getting discovered now with the coverage from technology advancements as well as all of the fall exposure tourneys we get to go to.

Morgan:  I think that the talent has already been here, but playing all the months out of the year has helped players’ skill level increase.  I believe that there is more exposure and opportunities these days due to emphasis on our Iowa players at the fall club tourneys

Alyssa: I believe it’s both. Talent has been getting better because of new coaching techniques and new ideas about the game of softball. There are also so many more opportunities because of better technology and more scouting/recruiting services. There are a lot of college exposure tournaments for Iowa teams in the fall to be showcased in. I think having the opportunities to play at a high level in front of dozens of college coaches helps a lot in the recruiting process.