By Grace Fillinger
Fromm left, Senior criminal justice major Samantha Urban, senior exercise science major Sydney Zinkon and senior sports management and communication major Grace Fillinger. Photo taken by Hayley Lewis.
Samantha Urban is a senior criminal justice major and outfielder on the Bluffton University softball team. Some of her fondest memories with the softball team are from her junior year during conditioning when doing the eye of pain, a three cone running drill, she tripped and fell while running backwards. Another fond memory is just playing with her best friends.
After graduation Urban plans on entering the court system as a deputy clerk. She currently has many job opportunities available and is looking for the one that will benefit her the most.
“I’m definitely ready to get out and be in the real world and start my career,” said Urban “But I’m not ready to leave all my friends behind either.”
There are many other memories that Urban looks back on but this one in particular she says is her favorite. Last summer during her final summer of travel softball, she ended up playing against Bluffton’s head coach Paige Jansen’s summer team. During this game which just so happens to be the championship game of the tournament, Urban swings for a grand slam and ends up winning them the game, beating her own coach.
There’s a lot about Urban that most might not know. Her favorite animal is actually a dinosaur, and she was born in California. Her two favorite country artists are Morgan Wallen and Zach Bryan and her favorite show will always be Grey’s Anatomy.
The people in Urban’s life have always been important to her. She recognizes the many supporters and role models she’s had throughout her life, the biggest being her parents.
“My parents have always been my biggest supporters. No matter what they’ve always been there for me whether it was a softball game, throughout college, or any good and bad moment I’ve gone through,” said Urban.
When it comes to her coaches and who has influenced her the most during her softball career there are two people who stand out. First being her former travel coach Phil Smith. Smith was her coach for several years and taught her a lot about not only the sport, but about life. Smith also helped Urban find coaching positions during her athletic career on the softball field. He brought a lot of knowledge to her.
Another coach that has made a large impact on Urban is the head coach of Bluffton’s softball team, Paige Jansen. Jansen has helped Urban broaden her horizons with softball and made her a better overall player.
Before Urban graduates Bluffton she has some words to leave the underclassman.
“Go out more. Don’t just sit in your room and be that person that doesn’t hang out with their friends or do anything like that,” said Urban. “Or don’t be that person that’s scared to do something. You’re in college, this is your time to do what makes you happy before it’s actually time to go out in the real world.”
