The RoundHouse | 5/3/2024 8:30:00 AM
By Paul Suellentrop
Wichita State softball coach
Kristi Bredbenner's first impression of
Addison Barnard is her falling at second base during a race at summer camp at Wilkins Stadium.
"That's very vivid," Barnard said. "I was running really hard and as I turned second, I kind of faceplanted."
That image is at odds with what most of us see from Barnard, who is a unique combination of power, speed, and skill with a softball bat. What happened after she tumbled tells us more about what made her a success athletically and academically.
"She got right back up, hustled, finished it and then asked if she could do it again," Bredbenner said. "The competitive juices that were flowing. She wanted to be the fastest one. She didn't care that she ate it."
Barnard, a senior center fielder from Beatrice, Neb., is wrapping up a landmark career as one of the game's best hitters. WSU (22-21, 13-11 American Athletic Conference) finishes the regular season vs. Memphis (6-40, 1-23) starting Friday (6 p.m. ESPN+). The AAC Championship begins May 8 at Wilkins Stadium.
Asking to run that race again showed Bredbenner determination. Then Barnard ran the bases in under 11 seconds and Bredbenner knew she possessed special athletic talent. Barnard accepted a scholarship offer soon after.
"I knew I had a chance to do really well and stand out, so that's why I wanted to do it again," Barnard said.
Barnard set a high standard for herself that day and never stopped, whether in the batting cages, the outfield or the classrooms and laboratories. She is a health science major and applied to the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing with plans to work in anesthesia. Her mother Deann Barnard is a nurse practitioner.
Watching her work inspired Barnard.
"As soon as I got into the hospital setting, I got a feeling that was where I was supposed to be," she said. "I really love helping people. Being able to connect with people in that aspect of life was really interesting to me."
Her list of academic honors almost matches her softball awards. She earned College Sports Communicators first-team Academic All-American in 2022. She is a two-time NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete and a fixture on the AAC All-Academic teams and WSU's Athletic Director's Honor Roll (most recently with a 4.0 GPA last fall).
"Academics absolutely came first for her," said Gretchen Torline, director of athletic academic services. "She was in a major, that has lots of science classes with lots of labs, that isn't always conducive to being an athlete. Very driven. Knew what she wanted to do. Studying all the time."
Barnard said she needed organization to make As in a challenging major. She learned that writing notes with a stylus on her iPad helps her visualize her study guides. She became known as "iPad Girl" as the tablet accompanied her on the bus and in hotel lobbies as Barnard squeezed in study time.
"If I write it down a bunch of times, when I'm asked a question about it, I can see myself writing it," she said. "I can't just hear something and learn it right away. I had to create a study habit that really helped me."
While she came to WSU with high expectations academically, Barnard wasn't sure how her softball skills would translate to college. She famously told coaches she hoped to use her speed as a freshman to run the bases.
She did much more than that.
Barnard ranks 10th on the NCAA career list with 86 home runs. She ranks first in Shocker and American Athletic Conference history after adding 17 to her total so far this season. She owns numerous All-American, All-Region and All-AAC awards, highlighted by first-team All-American and AAC Player of the Year honors in 2022.
Those numbers, in addition to a career .363 batting average, 65 stolen bases and improved skills in center field, aren't the most important part of Barnard's time at Wichita State.
"She's very goal-oriented, focused on what she wants to do beyond softball," Bredbenner said. "Holistically, Addie B is great at everything. It doesn't surprise me one bit she's a great student. She's going to work hard to be the best at it."
Last month, Barnard was named WSU's Scholar-Athlete of the Year at the Wheaties awards ceremony.
"She is very good at being focused and making sure she doesn't miss anything in her chapters," teammate
Camryn Compton said. "The other night she spent about four hours on one chapter. Most people would say that, and you be like 'Did they really?' She really does. She puts in the time."
Torline said that Barnard's success in the health sciences showed professors that properly motivated athletes can thrive in those majors, even while juggling practice, games and travel with conflicting labs and classes.
"She was such as great student, and so diligent, that she really paved the way for a lot of athletes afterward in those classes, especially softball," Torline said. "She really did what we stress with the athletes – that what you do in class matters for all the other athletes."
It is hard for those who watched to pick their favorite
Addison Barnard home run. It is hard for Barnard, herself, to evaluate the 86 softballs smacked over outfielders, fences and scoreboards.
"There's so many it's a blur," Bredbenner said.
Barnard, who is WSU's career leader with 215 runs batted in, hit 22 homers as a freshman and 33 as a sophomore. Last season, a shoulder injury limited her power, although she played in 52 of WSU's 56 games. She hit 14 home runs with a .369 batting average, nine doubles, a career-high four triples and 22 steals.
She is going out with similar numbers as a senior - .372 batting average, a career-high 10 doubles and a .478 on-base percentage on track for a career-high.
Paired with a power-packed lineup, Barnard's home runs highlighted the program's breakout era. The Shockers played in three straight NCAA regionals and won AAC titles in 2021 and 2023.
When Barnard walks past renderings of plans for
a renovation and expansion of Wilkins Stadium and its locker room and practice facilities, she knows she and her teammates played a major role elevating softball at WSU.
"I've gotten to do so many things that a lot of people don't," she said. "This program has shaped me into who I am today, and I couldn't be more grateful. It's taught me how to enjoy the moments and why you enjoy the moments."
As she approaches her last weeks at the stadium, she is focused on enjoying those moments.
"Even the little things – talks with the team, lining up on the foul line, getting your name called," she said. "Playing catch. Warmups. I'm going to soak it in."
Fans who come out to Wilkins Stadium over the next two weeks should also soak in their opportunities to watch Barnard play her final games in Wichita.
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
