Walker

REXANNE WALKER

ATHLETE OF THE MONTH

Rexanne Walker: A softball player selected as San Jose Mercury News Girl’s Athlete of the Week

SONIA PATIL writer

As the last bell rings, students pour out of Tino’s doors to go home, but junior softball player Rexanne Walker is on the field kicking up dirt as she swings her right arm and warms up to pitch. Walker’s journey in softball started when she was four. “My dad just signed me up for tee-ball, and ever since then, I fell in love with the sport […] Having my dad as a coach was definitely a confidence booster, and just having that group of friends to play sports with was really fun,” Walker said.

Her years of practice have since paid off. Walker was selected as the ‘Girls Athlete of the Week’ by San Jose Mercury News after receiving 25,025 votes. She threw a two-hit shutout with six strikeouts against Prospect out of eight games, where she pitched a complete game without letting the opposing team score any runs. Walker also has a 2.10 earned run average (ERA) and is the team’s leadoff hitter with two runs batted in (RBI).

Despite her incredible accomplishments, Walker was shocked when she first heard about being selected. Said Walker, “Everyone at practice was like, ‘Oh, you got nominated!’ That was a turning point [for] being recognized as an athlete […] And 25,000 votes, I was not expecting that because of the anxiety and anticipation of the contest.”

Currently, Walker practices on the school field for around two and a half hours. For her summer team, her time commitment amps up to around five hours a day, where she plays as both a pitcher and an outfielder. Said Walker, “I love practicing and getting better. The repetition helps a lot, especially with my mental preparation for the games.”

Even with hours of practice, she sometimes struggles with self-doubt. Said Walker, “Before a game, I try to get out of my head as much as possible because I know as a pitcher the game is kind of riding on my shoulders. I try to give myself positive thoughts before and during warmups to fix whatever I

“HONESTLY, MY WORST ENEMY IS JUST MYSELF. I GET IN MY HEAD A LOT AND JUST HAVE SELF DOUBT REXANNE WALKER “

need to.”

Like other athletes, Walker has gotten injured during her softball career. Said Walker, “I had to do a bunch of rehab for [my broken leg, so] I didn’t really pitch much [...] I couldn’t really do anything. So just coming back from that has definitely been a difficult experience. But now that I’m back in, it’s fun.”

Additionally, she has also faced challenges with coaches and her own mentality. Said Walker, “[One of the] coaches that I’ve had told me, ‘Oh, you’re too small to be a pitcher in college. You’re not going to make it unless you’re in the outfield.’ […] I guess coaches in the past have brought me down. And then honestly, my worst enemy is just myself. I get in my head a lot and just have self-doubt. It’s just like if I do bad, then it’s all my fault, like self-blame. I mean I’m sure everyone goes through it, but for me, as a pitcher, it’s scary because for high school we don’t really have another pitcher.”

However, even with setbacks, she enjoys the sport and her relationship with her teammates. Said Walker, “It’s definitely really fun, the chemistry we have. We’re all friends outside of softball, and the bond I have with my catcher is one of a kind. And that goes for anyone on the team. We all have inside jokes and laugh and have a lot of fun.”

When asked who her role models were in softball, Walker pointed to her senior captains Alyssa Delgado and Jacqueline Solomon. “In the dugout, it’s kind of quiet, but when they are there everyone is up and cheering, so definitely those two are what I’m trying to be like. They bring a lot of life and fun to the team,” Walker said.

With the whirlwind of emotions that come with softball, Walker loves her sport and looks forward to a future in it. “I want to play softball in college — I’ve always said that since I was a little kid. Now that I’m getting [older], it’s definitely becoming more than a dream,” Walker said INVESTIGATIONS | 25