Due to the current coronavirus situation and all sports being shut down, there are a lot of athletes who have had their senior seasons cut short. ENC Sports Review thought it would be nice to highlight some of these seniors as a small way to celebrate their senior year, since so much has been taken from them already. Today, we will highlight Southern Nash High School senior Elisabeth Collie. We thank Elisabeth for taking the time to sit down with ENC Sports Review and answer these questions for us. We had fun learning more about her and hope you will too!
How long have you been playing sports?
I have been playing sports since I was four years old.
What teams have you been on? (This can be rec ball, middle school and high school)
I played coach pitch and rec ball softball through Nash County Parks and Recreation until sixth grade. I played softball for Southern Nash Middle School during seventh and eighth grade, and have been playing varsity softball for Southern Nash High School every year of high school. I have also played travel softball throughout my career.
Who has been your favorite coach and what did he or she teach you that you carry with you through today?
My dad has been my coach for several teams throughout my life, and he has taught me life lessons about being a leader and tailoring leadership styles to different personalities of teammates.
What is your favorite memory and least favorite memory of playing sports?
Honestly, this suspension of sports has been my least favorite moment of playing sports as of now. The sudden surprise and now anticipation has been a difficult thought to wrap my head around. I have made so many great memories throughout my athletic career, but I think one of my favorites was beating Fike at home in 2018 after a lot of talk and a highly anticipated game.
What is one thing or event that if you could do over again you would change?
If I could change one thing about my time at Southern Nash, I would have tried to take up a position of leadership earlier in my career, and not just as a senior.
Who is someone you look up to and why?
Someone I look up to is Jenna Lilley. Jenna played softball at the University of Oregon from 2015-2018. I always loved to watch her play because of the passion and dedication that she played with. I was actually able to meet her at the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City in 2018 and it was an unbelievable experience that I will never forget.
If you could go back 5 years and tell yourself something then that you know now what would it be?
If I could go back 5 years and give my 13 year old self a piece of advice, I would tell her to start playing with a chip on her shoulder, because she should be confident in who she is and the kind of player she’s capable of becoming.
What is something you would tell someone trying to follow in your footsteps?
If someone was trying to follow in my footsteps, I would tell them to keep their head down and work hard, and to ignore the noise around them. I would also tell them to not be afraid to be a leader and be confident in themselves.
If you have played your last high school game, what is something that you will remember for the rest of your life?
Obviously I hope this is not the case, but if I have played my last high school game, something that I will remember forever is how much fun I had along the way. Fortunately there have been more wins than losses, but I will especially remember the amount of love that I have for this year’s specific team. I had so much fun in the few games and practices that we had this year, and I can only hope that we get to continue that fun sometime soon.
Feel free to add anything that I might not have asked that people would like to know about your time playing sports or your future plans.
I can only hope that this season is not over, but if it is I’d like to thank Coach Collie, Coach Powell, Coach Hicks, and Coach Keel for the influence that they have had on my playing career and more. As for my future plans, I will be attending Appalachian State University in the fall and am planning on majoring in Political Science/Pre-Legal Studies with the goal of going to law school after graduating.
Thank you again, Elisabeth Collie, for taking the time to be one of our 2020 senior spotlights. We wish you well on all of your future endeavors.
Attention 2020 Seniors: If you are interested in possibly being our next spotlight, please inbox us with a picture of you (head shot or action shot, or multiple pictures), your name, school, sports/positions played and answers to some or all of the questions above.
Note: All photographs have been contributed to this post from the senior’s family.
ENC Sports Review 