Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Monday was a special day for Manchester senior athlete Hadley West, as she officially signed her letter of intent to continue her softball career next year at Providence College in Rhode Island.
West said there were plenty of reasons why Providence ended up being her choice.
“I really love the team and the culture they’re building,” she said. “I love the campus, the fact that it’s a bigger school but still feels smaller at the same time. I’ve really fallen in love with Rhode Island.”
West will continue her softball career for the Friars, and will be leaving behind quite the legacy at Manchester. She was a three-sport athlete for the Lady Squires, competing in volleyball and basketball as well as softball. West holds the school record for aces and finished her volleyball career with over 1,000 digs.
In the first three games of her senior basketball season, she’s averaging five points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals a game.
As a junior last spring, West led the Manchester softball team with a .521 batting average, hitting 16 doubles and driving in 22 runs. Her OPS of 1.312 was the highest on the team by nearly 300 points.
She says that playing multiple sports has helped her become a better athlete in many different ways.
“I think playing basketball has helped with my conditioning a lot. It’s allowed me to become a much more versatile player,” she said. “With volleyball, I think that doing a sport that I’m not the best at is good for me, especially with the team aspect and being a leader.”
While those other sports have turned her into the athlete she is today, she says she’s excited to be able to only focus on one.
“I love volleyball and basketball but I think if I can just put all of my efforts and energy into softball, I can be really really good,” West said.
Hadley plans on studying biology and animal sciences with the hopes of one day becoming a veterinarian.
