Alabama Softball Newcomer Q&A: Alexis Mack
1/28/2020 1:31:00 PM | Softball
Heading into the 2020 season, we will be posting Q&A's with each of the six newcomers on this year's Alabama softball team. The first Q&A is with senior Alexis Mack, a speedy left-handed hitter who arrives in Tuscaloosa after a successful stint at Oregon.
How did you get your start in softball?
"My dad played baseball. He played in college and for the junior USA team. He was a great baseball player. From the time I could hold a bat I was playing softball, hitting from the left side just like he did. I played other sports too. My mom was a cheerleader, so I was also a cheerleader. I also played basketball for a majority of my life. I love basketball. I have also always been into running and sprinting, but never really competed in it."
When did softball become a serious pursuit?
"It had nothing to do with me looking at myself in the mirror and saying, 'I'm good at this.' I just love to play and I love to practice. I really enjoy practicing softball. I would finish school and beg my dad to go hit with me. That's how I knew that it was something I loved and would be grateful to do in college.
"I made varsity as a freshman in high school which was a big deal for me. When I started playing for the Chicago Bandits, that meant driving six hours to Chicago and six hours back every single weekend of high school. I never really had time to do anything but softball. I loved to practice softball, so I was okay with that. I was okay with giving up every social event and all of my other sports, everything, so that I could do something I love."
When you were first looking at colleges, what was high on your priority list?
"My journey might be a little different than some people's here. I really felt like I had to pursue a lot of the colleges I wanted because I was from a smaller area in Ohio. I was a small kid without a huge name. I fell in love with schools like Alabama, watching Kayla Braud and Jennifer Fenton on TV. Something in my heart would tell me when I would watch the World Series that I was going to be there one day. I loved how the SEC really seemed like the biggest stage in softball at the time. My sights were set on playing in the SEC, period.
"I remember when I was a sophomore in high school, I had an English teacher that made us write down our biggest dream and goal on a star and hang it up. Mine said I want to play softball in the SEC. That was it. I had other schools looking at me, so it probably wasn't the smartest thing at the time to kind of shut those off, but I had this dream. It's what I wanted to do."
As a transfer athlete, what advice would you give other student-athletes that might be afraid to take that step and start over?
"I really think that players going through the recruiting process need to prioritize the things that are important when they are looking at a school. It shouldn't just be 'I want to play in the SEC' or something like that. It should be that you want to be surrounded by quality coaches that are going to care about you and quality players that are good people. Look for things that are going to make you happy. If you can find things to make you happy every single day, you're going to have a really great time.
"The second thing is, at the end of the day you have one shot to do this. Above all you need to be happy. There shouldn't be a time if you're a good person, working hard and doing the right things that you're not happy and you're not fulfilled. You shouldn't have to push through and try to be in that environment. That is the biggest advice I would give. I'm not saying that me transferring twice wasn't hard, it was hard. Especially the second time, but at the end of the day you're going to feel really good if you're happy."
How did Alabama come into the picture last year?
"I originally didn't plan on transferring last year. I have nothing but positive things to say about the coaching staff at the University of Oregon currently and the players there. I had a wonderful time, but when I decided to leave the program to take a breath for myself, I wasn't really sure if I was going to play softball again because there are a lot of humps you have to get over to do what I did, transferring a second time especially going to a high-profile school from another high-profile program. I really wanted to play again but was aware that I might not. Coach Murphy reached out to me a couple weeks after I entered the transfer portal and said he was sorry with what had happened, but he saw it as a wonderful opportunity. Something about that felt right. Growing up, Alabama was my dream school. It was my number-one school my whole life. I think even on Facebook when I was 11, I put that my favorite school was Alabama. It was something I couldn't pass up. It's my dream school"
Was your journey coming full-circle to your dream school surreal?
"When I was 11 or 12 years old, I got a ball signed by Kayla Braud. No one at Alabama knew who I was, I was just some random fan. The ball said, "We hear you're such a great softball player. Keep working hard in softball and school. Roll Tide." I had this ball sitting in my room. When I decided to commit here, I wrote on another softball and gave it to Coach Murphy that said the same thing. 'I hear great things about Alabama, and I can't wait to work hard in school and softball at The University of Alabama.' Seeing that, if you work hard and you're a good person and you do things the right way, your journey is going to lead you to your dream when you least expect it. That is kind of when I went 'oh my gosh', I get to wear the shoes of my idol and I get to play for the coach I have always wanted to play for. It was surreal."
What were your first impressions when you visited Tuscaloosa?
"At first I didn't know how I was going to respond because I knew it was going to be very different. I came in with a very open mind though. Sitting in the airport on the way back, I reflected on my visit and thought this place made me really happy. It was a happy environment, a positive place. There was no baggage attached from my past. That's really what I was excited about. I could go start over.
"I didn't make the decision right away though. I had to do a lot of reflecting. I kept overthinking and analyzing for weeks, but I woke up one day and just knew. I called my parents and said this is what I want to do, this is where I want to go. I came out for regionals with my dad and gave Coach Murphy the ball. It was very cool and very emotional for me."
How have you acclimated now that you've been here for a semester?
"I moved here in August right before we started. I got the opportunity to live with Elissa [Brown] and Krystal [Goodman] which has been nothing short of a blessing. They are two absolutely wonderful people. It was very easy for me to move in and get settled here. Coach Murphy asked me the other week about how the fall has been for me and all I had to say was 'this is amazing'. There was no other place I could have come in like I did here and feel comfortable, happy and loved. That was super important given the year I had last year. It was not hard. The girls and the coaches have made me feel so appreciated and cared about and that was important."
What was it like playing at Rhoads Stadium for the first time wearing the Alabama uniform?
"I felt different than I have ever felt before. I have always been very intense when I'm in the game and just really into it. I'm still obviously intense, but it just felt like I was playing kickball in the backyard with my friends. That's the best way I can put it. I was having so much fun. I didn't care if I got out or didn't play well, I was going to try my best. I get to play at my dream school, are you kidding me!? That's been my mindset. There hasn't been a moment where I have dreaded practice. I want to be at every single second of everything, always. It's not that I've never felt that way before. I've always been grateful and loved the game, but it's different now. It's really fun and I am grateful for the struggle I had last year to make me feel like this."
The team set a school record for stolen base percentage last season, so how do you see your speed complimenting an already skilled group?
"Speed is the name of the game and if you're a team that doesn't have speed, then you're not going to win. I might be a little biased, but the most successful teams I've played on are the ones with the most speed. Not only that, but if you can have a few consistent power hitters, which we have more than a few, then you are really dangerous. Speed really puts pressure on the defense. When you have fast people on base and then you have someone like Bailey [Hemphill] or [Kaylee] Tow or KB [Sides] that can just kill the ball, it's just runs on runs on runs. Speed doesn't slump. It creates a consistent offense that can give defenses a lot of anxiety and it's going to win games. That's something I saw when I was coming onto this team. I get to go play with some of the fastest people in collegiate softball, are you kidding me? That's awesome!"
What are some of your goals for the season, both individually and as a team?
"Individually, I just want a season full of happiness, love and smiles. I just want that feeling of playing kickball the whole time. I have had seasons that don't feel like that and it sucks. That's the only thing I am putting on myself, and to be a good teammate and a good leader. I'll be whatever this team needs me to be because that is why I am here. For team goals, I think that we want to give the seniors the ending and the season they deserve, and at the end of the day we want to win. We want to win the SEC, we want to win as many games as possible and we want to win it all. That's it. I think we have the personnel to do it. I think we have a tough schedule and I think that makes for an amazing learning curve throughout a season which creates a championship-level team. I have played that kind of schedule before and it makes for a very successful team."
What would be your best advice for a young player who aspires to play college softball?
"If you have a dream school, the number one thing that has worked for me is accepting yourself and being OK with being different. You can't be like everyone else if you want to play at your dream school. You have to be yourself and you have to make yourself valuable enough that your dream school is going to want you. If you think you're working hard, you have to work even harder. Leave no question in their mind. Work hard and be yourself. Accept you and whatever makes you great, own it and I think you're going to be successful."
