Hoffman wraps up softball career
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| Submitted photo -- Jenifer Hoffman recently finished her final season at the University of Illinois Springfield. |
Hoffman, a 2003 graduate of Collinsville, just finished her last season at the University of Illinois at Springfield, a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics school.
"It kills me, I've been playing softball for 16 years," Hoffman said. "I've been doing some coaching, I want to be on the field."Hoffman will coach a 12 and under Collinsville Extreme select softball team this summer. She led the U of I at Springfield's offense this spring with a .307 batting average and 17 RBIs. Hoffman also had three home runs, a school record.
"It helped that I was playing on the same team as Joanna Eddy," Hoffman said. "She got on base and that gave me the opportunity to get RBIs."
Hoffman and Eddy, a graduate of Civic Memorial, both received recognition for their accomplishments, as American Midwest Conference coaches voted the two local players onto the all-AMC softball team as honorable mention selections.
"I think physically, I've stayed the same," Hoffman said on playing four years of college softball. "But emotionally, you grow up 20 years by playing sports in college. You have a lot of responsibility between school and sports."
Hoffman played two years at Rend Lake, a junior college in Ina, before starting at the U of I at Springfield last year. She earned all-conference honors her sophomore season at Rend Lake.
"I'm glad I played at a junior college," she said. "I would recommend it to any player that's not going to a Division I school. The competition at a junior college is good, it really got me ready to play at a four-year school."
The Prairie Stars finished the year with a 9-34 mark.
"My teammates this year were my 13 best friends," Hoffman said. "I've never been as close to any other team I played on. We really kept each other going."
The Kahoks went 17-17 Hoffman's senior year. Pete Hoffman, Jenifer's dad, coached Collinsville from 2001-06.
"My dad (Pete) and Brett Swip (Collinsville Extreme coach) are very good at recruiting," she said. "They really prepared me and other girls to play in college. If it were not for them, I don't know if I would have had the chance to play in college."
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