DAVE FAVILA | Staff Writer
RIO HONDO — Miranda Martinez may still have another six months to go until she graduates, but her college future has already been secured.
With the stroke of a pen Tuesday, Miranda committed to pitch for the Texas A&M International University Dustdevils softball team beginning in the spring of 2018.
“This is a big goal of mine even though when I first started high school, I didn’t really know I wanted to play college softball, although I have been playing since I was 7,” she said. But somewhere along the line it just hit me that playing in college was a goal I wanted to accomplish and today I did it.”
Thanks to her pitching prowess, the Rio Hondo softball team finished last season with an impressive 27-5 overall record and were 14-0 in District 32-4A en route to the league crown.
Lady Cats head softball coach Brett Esparza said he is confident Miranda has what it takes to succeed at the collegiate level.
“She is an exceptional and very driven young lady, he said. “For her to go from JV to varsity during her freshman season speaks volumes of her character and work ethic.
“Furthermore, she’s just a great student-athlete. She in the top 10 of her class and that makes her very desirable to colleges because she is a student first and then an athlete. We are just so proud of her.”
Miranda, who credits her father for much of her athletic success, said she decided on TAMIU because she liked the softball program, the school’s proximity to the Valley and, most importantly, it fit her academic needs.
“I plan on getting a Bachelor of Arts in biology with a minor in psychology,” she said. “Ultimately I’d like to pursue a career in physical therapy but also go on to graduate school as well.”
TAMIU is a Division II university that competes as part of the Heartland Conference along with nine other teams from Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, including St. Edward’s University in Austin, St. Mary’s University in San Antonio and Dallas Baptist University.