Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 0:04

I'm David Haug, superintendent of the Jefferson R-7 School District, and I'm really excited about this podcast this morning. And one of the students I really admired a lot during my time as a principal at Jefferson R-7, Abi Chipps is here with us today. Abi's really had a unique, I would say, athletic career, but I think it's more than that and we're going to talk about that a little bit. And for you parents at home, we're going to talk a little bit about the recruiting process too. So if you've got somebody who's interested in playing at the next level, it can be a difficult process. I won't spoil this, but I think it really does boil down to your family taking care of things, and that's something I think I've learned as an AD for many years is that don't rely on others, but use everybody you can as a resource. Maybe is the way to look at it. We'll talk that down the road. Thanks for joining me.

Abi Chipps: 0:54

Yeah, thanks for having me.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 0:55

And I'm going to say this up front and I'm going to ask this question here. I think our community knows Abby as a softball player and we know she's a great person. But she's so much more than that and I think that that's something I saw you as a high school student was you always treated people with the utmost respect. Your grades were always very, very solid. She was a very all-around person but really exceptional as an athlete that presented some opportunities for her. But I'm going to ask you a question, abby.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:24

The first question this is the hardest one you're going to get all day is you know, as a principal, I could look outside and see the batting cage and I would see you out there hitting in the summer when nobody else is around except for Mrs Holdinghausen and myself, and so I wasn't at all your practices. But I know that you had spent a ton of time in softball you and your family and so when you do that, you also had. I think your skill set with your hands was incredible, and I say this as you are the Missouri leader in singles. I have the historically most singles in the history of the Missouri softball, but also you had the NCAA. You were the hardest to strike out. One year you had one strikeout and 112 at-bats. Okay, your hand-eye coordination. There's a rumor right now that you that we did the pickleball stuff at the Helt Wellness Fair Suddenly you're a really good pickleball player. Is there any truth to this?

Abi Chipps: 2:28

Well, I've been playing with some people here at the middle school and it's a lot of fun.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 2:30

I have a lot of fun. Yeah, I know your principal said of course you put the paddle in her hand, of course she was the best one out there.

Abi Chipps: 2:33

Well, steve's pretty good too, okay.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 2:35

Yeah, so um no, you're incredibly skilled, but I think sometimes I know how much time I spent in the football realm and I've talked to this with other athletes as well former students who have gone on to do different things. You've got to be careful about letting that define you as a person. Where are you at right now? We talked just a few minutes ago. The softball has stopped. How's that going?

Abi Chipps: 3:07

It's a very hard transition, I would say so. I mean, like whenever I was in college, my senior year at least, they even got all of the senior athletes together at Indiana State and they put on like a production kind of, but they brought somebody in to kind of talk about like how hard it is to make the transition from being an athlete and having a sport define you all of your life basically, and then completely just there's a day that it just ends and that's a really hard transition to make. But I think that, especially with coaching, it has been a good bridge to the real world and being outside of the sport. But it is a hard transition. But it also has opened so many doors for me that it has allowed me to get so much more like just there's so many more doors, so many more opportunities and, like I said, I'm not completely out of it, I'm still coaching and stuff, and. But you know, there's also other athletes, there's other girls that I graduated with that they were ready to be done.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 4:06

I was going to ask yeah. First of all, I'm going to say great job, indiana State, and I think that's a great choice for you.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 4:13

It sounded like you had a great career there, not just the softball, but enjoyed the experience and kudos to them for having that and thinking about those transitions. So when you played your last game because I remember distinctly having a conversation I was in a situation where I could have played one more year and but I also knew kind of where I was with I had red shirted that I could get out, and I had a conversation with a friend who was not a football player and they said you know, this could be your last game and I'm like I'm good, I'm done. So where were you at the end?

Abi Chipps: 4:48

Well, I have kind of a funny story about this. So there was a girl who was a couple of years ahead of me in school and she ended up taking her fifth year because that was she had a COVID year left over and all throughout college like really up until my senior year, I thought there's no way that I would ever even consider taking a fifth year, and a lot of that had to do with homesickness and I had a rough first year and just being gone and away from home. I never thought that I would even consider fifth year. But by the time that I got around towards the end of my junior year and into my senior year, I thought you know that would really be hard to turn down just and take softball out of it.

Abi Chipps: 5:27

Just the whole experience of college like being around all those girls, and I was very, very fortunate with the girls that I played with and all the girls on my team and who I lived with. So, yeah, I mean I I don't know if I was ready to be done, necessarily, but I mean you don't really have a choice, so we'll ask too?

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 5:48

did you have any significant injuries while you were there?

Abi Chipps: 5:51

So I broke my thumb, and there's never a good time ever but, it really was the best time that it really could have happened. It happened right as soon as we started fall practice my junior year. I broke my thumb and had to get surgery, but I was out for a couple months and then that was it. I was ready for the spring, so I was very fortunate with that and your softball season.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 6:12

Correct me if I'm wrong. You have a fall season. There's no really championships to be won.

Abi Chipps: 6:18

Right. Yeah, it's mainly like scrimmages. We play like some junior colleges that are in the same area. Just, we play like some junior colleges that are in the same area just really to get some live pitching.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 6:27

Sure.

Abi Chipps: 6:27

Yeah, keep moving forward.

Speaker 3: 6:27

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 6:29

So you've kind of transitioned out of the college realm. We're very fortunate to have you here as a teacher and that was great. Anything else to add on to that and kind of that mindset of anything you would have done differently during your process there.

Abi Chipps: 6:50

As far as transition.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 6:53

Transition, or I can't imagine you. I know how hard you worked, but you would have left anything. Do you feel like you left anything on the table?

Abi Chipps: 7:01

Not at all. No, I think I the way that I ended and everything. I think it was perfect. It's just, it was so sweet that it was hard to walk away from I understand.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 7:10

That's awesome. Yeah, because I would agree with you. That's not always the case. I felt like I was done, I was ready to be done and I have not looked back.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 7:20

Yeah, I've never said said boy, I want to do that again yeah, yeah but that's awesome and I think, again, taking that time and we'll talk about the recruiting process here in a little bit but I'm going to explore a little bit more about your decision making to go to Indiana State to make sure you're going to the right place for you and maybe not always just the prestige or what people think you should be doing. So I think you made a great choice there and kudos Indiana State. So pre-high school you actually played Little League baseball with the boys for a good long time.

Abi Chipps: 7:52

I did. I stopped playing whenever I was in sixth grade. I can't even remember when I started, I guess I was too young to even remember, but for as long as I can remember I played Little League baseball, but then, up until sixth grade is whenever I transitioned to playing softball uh, for good. There was one year whenever I was little I think I was in maybe third or fourth grade and I played for like a little league, like t-ball softball team, and I played that for a year and probably done, you probably dominated well, I couldn't stand it.

Abi Chipps: 8:24

It was just too slow and I fit better with the boys at the time, and so then I transitioned to the Jeffco Express whenever I was a sixth grader, so entering 12U.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 8:36

So was there any? I've heard a rumor that they actually had to tell you to not play anymore. They need to go towards softball, no.

Abi Chipps: 8:42

I'm yeah.

Speaker 3: 8:43

All right.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 8:45

I'm just kidding, but yeah, no, it's kind of impressive, you know, and I think that I'm sure that had an impact on on you later as far as your skillset and learning to compete.

Speaker 3: 8:53

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 8:53

And kind of stretching your, you know, getting your abilities to match your situations Big deal. So, um, let me ask you this too. So at what point you're you know, I think all of us have when we're little kids we think about I want to do this or that, or I want to be the quarterback of the Dolphins or, in my case, or Broncos, with John Elway and Dan Marino Like. At what point did you say? Like not just a dream, but like for real, like I want to play at the college level?

Abi Chipps: 9:22

yeah, whenever I started softball, I was still hitting from the right side and at that point, like I just hadn't I don't know, I hadn't maximized my potential from the right side. And so whenever I was a seventh grader, I started playing for a coach who switched me to the left side and I started slapping and I went through summer ball and at that point I started thinking to myself I might want to like continue to do this for longer than just high school. And then eighth grade came around and I thought, yeah, this is could very well be a possibility for me. And so I would say, end of my middle school career, I would say, is whenever I started thinking to myself I could very well end up playing in college well, and I talk about your hand-eye coordination, but you were really fast too.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 10:07

Your speed on the base path caused people a lot of problems. I just remember watching you play and trying to think about the totality of different athletes I've seen and I always felt like that. To make another comparison, I hope you take this as a compliment I played with Rod Smith, missouri Southern, who ended up in the Ring of Honor with the Denver Broncos, and then to be around Will Compton in high school To watch you on the field and to watch you around your teammates. I throw you in that category of you're a heck of an athlete, but you were really a good teammate and I always took from them like it's okay to be a great athlete, but it's maybe more important to be a good person, at least good to your teammates. Not that people don't make mistakes or you know they leave.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 10:51

Both of them have had very public lives and um, but I kind of saw you in that same vein as treating people well, um, and so I could see where. How did how did that transition into college? Like, when you got to college, um, did you still kind of have that leader? Did people kind of look to you?

Abi Chipps: 11:07

Yeah, I would say so and I would hope that they would say the same. Yeah, but I don't know. I think that like, not only like, has that like, I don't know, like it might seem like a selfless thing and it is a selfless thing to be very for your teammates, but I would say that that also has helped me so much along the way, in the sense of like I don't know, like the way that I talk to my teammates is almost like practice for the way that I self-talk as well.

Abi Chipps: 11:34

so like, I feel like I'm pretty good at like being able to like shake things off like when things go wrong, like I feel like I'm pretty good at internalizing it and then just kind of moving on to the next, and I would say that that has helped me a lot like at least athletically and even into my professional career too as well, but being able to like internalize and have good self-talk, like there is a lot of emphasis on that in college, which in college it's different because you go there and all everybody's good, you know everybody's good. Different because you go there and all everybody's good, you know everybody's good. And so what makes you different, it makes you great is not necessarily your skill set, as much as it is how good of a teammate you are and how you're, how you internalize things and really just your whole mentality as a whole very interesting.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 12:19

Yeah, was there ever a point? I know I'm jumping around here, but was there ever a point I know I'm jumping around? Here, but was there ever a point you were like first of all, what am I doing here and can I make it?

Abi Chipps: 12:29

Yeah, whenever I was a freshman, like I said, I had a rough year just all around and I was prepared and I talk about this frequently but I At R7 did such a good job of preparing me in every single way academically, athletically, I would say like completely prepared but I was not prepared to leave home and that was the biggest thing for me was leaving home, and so I was extremely homesick and that was really hard for me to get over. Yeah, but going into my freshman year season, there was a girl on the team that was just an absolute stud. She was amazing and she was a second baseman and she was a leadoff batter and so I kind of knew my role, like I was going to be spending most of my time on the bench and that was just it there, really, wasn't much I could do about it.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 13:28

You have to work your way. That's what people don't understand.

Abi Chipps: 13:30

You've got to work your way through it. Oh yeah, absolutely, and I guess it was our third tournament. We were down at Ole Miss playing in a series and that girl runs the first base and tears her, yeah, her ACL, and so she's out for the season. She's done.

Abi Chipps: 13:50

she was a fifth year senior, so she had come back that year, and so at that point I it was the game that we were playing, ole Miss and I was thrown into second base and I was like, okay, well, I guess, here we go. And um, I started out and I remember I had a good first few games and then just the wheels came off for me and um it was, it was a really, really hard time, coupled with wanting to go home, gone every weekend. It was just a crazy time. And I was thinking to myself at that point like there would be times that I would be able to. Well, I would sneak home, and I say sneak home because during that time it was still COVID. So if you went home, you technically had to do a week quarantine, which I don't know if I should even be saying this, but I would sneak.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 14:39

I think we're beyond the statute of limitations.

Abi Chipps: 14:41

Yeah, but I would sneak home and I would come back and like it would be like literally like overnight, just to like go home and eat a meal at home with my dad.

Speaker 3: 14:51

Yeah.

Abi Chipps: 14:52

And I would go home, eat a meal, come back. And at that point I remember saying to myself one night I was sitting on the couch and I thought to myself, what if I just don't go back? But I did, and I'm so glad that I did. You know, I can't even imagine what would happen if I didn't, you know so actually Mr Rugley and I talked about this this week.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 15:15

I'll be brief because I know this is your time, but he talked about being homesick that first weekend and called his mom and said come get me, because he said they didn't let me take my car. She said well, we'll see in a couple days you can just walk home you know what I mean.

Speaker 3: 15:29

Like it's hard. Oh, it's very my parents uh, I was.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 15:35

That summer I went to college at Missouri Southern. My dad was actually. They were moving back from Dexter back to Bonterra and by the time I got back home I'd never seen they had a whole life for a semester in a house. I didn't even know where they. I didn't know where they lived. So I really felt like I had no home to go back to. That's an incredible story, Um, and I know how supportive your parents. Your parents have done a wonderful job, really both of you oh yeah, yeah, you're.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 16:00

Uh, I don't know how much humor you produce, but your brother was always a great humor. Yeah, I kind of look at my own kids like you consume humor and you produce humor.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 16:10

And we kind of have that relationship in our own family. Anyway, let's talk about your high school career. Also basketball, track and field. Talk about the different. Let's talk about the team aspect. You were on some very high-level track teams and also a softball team that plays third and state Can I talk about that softball experience? Because I drew the short straw on that and didn't get to go over and watch it. I had to take care of the football game and stuff at home, but we stopped school.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 16:40

I don't know if you knew this. We stopped school and the kids came down to the cafeteria and we watched it on the TV and stuff. Correct me if I'm wrong. There were, like you played two games there. You played the semifinal game, was it 1-0?

Speaker 3: 16:53

1-0, yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 16:53

And then you guys. So there were two runs in two games.

Speaker 3: 16:57

Yes.

Abi Chipps: 16:59

And that's how good oh yeah, I think our last like four games, I think from the district championship on. I think they were all one-run games.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 17:09

I think that's right. Yeah, yeah, I don't know if I thought it in that context.

Abi Chipps: 17:13

Yeah, I know our district championship. We played Kelly and it was a two-to-one game. And then after that we played quarterfinals down here and oh, was that Blair Oaks?

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 17:26

I thought it was South Callaway, maybe maybe I don't, even I don't remember but south callaway.

Abi Chipps: 17:32

I could be wrong and then we know blair oaks was whenever we got to state, because whenever we were there, that's when we played them that was a one-run game. And then, uh, the consolation game was a one-run game as well.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 17:44

And it kind of the offense consisted of you getting on, you stealing second and then Sarah knocking you in. A lot of it was yeah, that's kind of how, but two high-level players there between you and Sarah, yeah, and then everybody else, really kind of pulling together for a small class, two school, yeah, really an amazing accomplishment there. Of course, you had a lot of I think you had like all state honors in softball and everything that went along with that and then kind of talk a little bit about basketball.

Abi Chipps: 18:19

Why did you do basketball? Well, we had such a great coach. Well, no, I really enjoyed, like I don't know. I liked having a break from softball and a lot of my friends played basketball. I really wasn't a basketball player. I never played basketball until I got to well, I guess I played in eighth grade, but that was like my first time ever playing basketball and I just thought it was really fun and I liked the team aspect a lot and I don't know Like I feel like a lot of the sport, like I don't know. I just I really liked it and the conditioning part of it. It really sucks at the time.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 18:51

Let me just tell you this you could tell you had with your like you got to spend some time with that. Yeah, but you were by far like the best athlete on the court. You just ran around everybody Well.

Abi Chipps: 19:00

I could run, I could run and I could run. That was about it.

Speaker 3: 19:03

That's what I had going for me.

Abi Chipps: 19:05

But no, it was really fun. I really enjoyed basketball Track. I would say I liked more, and that's probably because I felt like I was better at it. Sure.

Speaker 3: 19:15

And.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 19:15

I felt like I succeeded better, more in your comfort zone.

Abi Chipps: 19:17

Yeah, absolutely, and I mean all I had to do was run. I didn't have to dribble a ball or shoot or turn left every once in a while yeah, right, but um, no, I really enjoyed track and like track I talk about like there is not a better feeling and like there is still no adrenaline that comes with getting in blocks and waiting for the gun to go off, and I absolutely fell in love with that. And it's such an individual sport but also a team sport at the same time, like I don't know, like I feel like a lot of people look at track and think, well, it's so individual, you know you're doing everything for yourself. But I wouldn't say that that's true and especially like with my experience with track and whenever we went to state and I mean we placed at state three, I think three years.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 20:02

Oh, I think that was right.

Abi Chipps: 20:03

Yeah, and like especially for me, like I ran a lot of relay teams Right, and so like I just loved the fact that it was team-oriented but also individualized at the same time.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 20:14

I have a question Were you doing softball along with track at that time?

Abi Chipps: 20:18

Yeah, so well, we would start playing travel ball in the spring and so sometimes it would overlap. But how I and my family always valued it was whatever sport you're in, season four is a sport that you're going to play. So you know, whether it be a practice or even a weekend game, like you're playing the sport that you committed to and that is your number one priority. So anytime that we would have like a practice or a game in spring, ball for travel ball track would always trump that. Or like if we had practice, uh, over the winter for softball and we had a basketball game going on or a basketball practice, practice for basketball and games would always trump softball yeah, so, yeah, so I I'll share this.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 21:03

I um, you know, growing up my dad's known for the football stuff, but he was really a heck of a track coach. So I did track a little bit growing up and then my senior year I came back to track. Really enjoyed it, Would you believe. I used to long jump. I long jumped once over 21 foot.

Abi Chipps: 21:18

Did you really yeah?

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 21:19

and threw the discus over 150.

Abi Chipps: 21:20

That's awesome.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 21:21

Yeah, can't do that anymore.

Speaker 3: 21:22

My body would fall apart. Let's go, but.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 21:27

I think the one thing I learned from him was and the track thing was, sometimes you have to recognize the talent and then it may not be their primary interest, but is there a way you can get them on your team? And so when I got to Pacific, I was the girls' track coach there and they never won a conference title, but there were three young ladies that were really good softball players. One of them, I think, went and pitched at. Indiana State. Really, this is back in the mid-2000s. Yeah, and she was a heck of a kid, yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 21:52

And then there was twins that were really good, so I made a deal with them that we'll protect your time to get to the softball practices Right, if you can give me. And they were great and they ended up winning the conference title and had a great year. But I kind of saw some similarities there. I'm just kind of curious how much you were doing softball in the spring.

Abi Chipps: 22:07

Oh yeah, I mean practices went year-round with softball, for travel ball, I mean we would have a fall. Well, we'd play in the summer and then we'd have like a couple weeks off or so and then we'd start practicing. And then we'd have a fall season. We'd play like three tournaments or so that we'd travel to, and then we'd practice all winter and then early spring, like March or so, we'd start playing. So I mean it was a year-round gig.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 22:34

Yeah. So I'm going to segue to academically. Here too. I kind of go back to a comment you made. I appreciate hearing that R7, you went over there and could handle it academically more. That's the most important thing to me. I would say my freshman year I struggled less with the homesickness but more really with academics. I just I yeah, I tell a story too where I was actually on a recruiting trip at Northwestern and I went to the football part of it and I was like man, this place is pretty cool. And then I sat down with the academic advisor and I realized I am, I am. I felt bad and I didn't never want to. I always felt like if I got in charge of a high school, that we would push to make sure we were challenged academically so that kids that want to go to like those. I was so embarrassed and I that always stuck with me. So I'm glad to hear that academically. But you know we focus a lot on the ACT here. I don't know what your score was. Can I ask what your score?

Abi Chipps: 23:29

was yeah, it was a 24.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 23:30

24? Yeah, how much time did you spend to get that 24? Did you just take it like once and get?

Abi Chipps: 23:36

it. I took it, I think, two. I think I took it two times, two or three times, but I think I might have got like a 22, 23, and a 24.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 23:48

Okay times, but I I think I might have got like a 22, 23 and a 24 okay yeah, so I was kind of similar in high school. Nobody said take it more, yeah, um, I think I had like a 23 and I was like, well, I'm eligible to play in college yeah, that kind of how you looked at it, yeah, kind of okay, very good. But you had strong academic grades. Did you leave? Had 23, maybe college hours, I think. Did that help you when you went to Indiana State?

Abi Chipps: 24:14

Yes, it helped me with my foundational studies classes. Now I graduated at the same time. It's not like I got to the end of my career or like the end of my college experience and like, could you know, slack off because I didn't have to take as many college classes. But I guess it was also different because I wanted to be a teacher. So you know like if I chose a different avenue then it might have been different, but it did knock quite a bit of my foundational studies classes out of the way for me.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 24:45

Okay, very good. Yeah, I think that's the more I look at R7, that was. I think we've done a lot of nice things here, but taking where kids maybe can save some money on the back end of their college experience. I know you were a little different with the scholarship and everything, yeah, but and by the way, is it a full? Is it a true full ride? It was not a true full ride.

Abi Chipps: 25:03

It was not a true full ride. I had like I don't know exactly what the percentage was, but I mean I didn't hardly pay anything. I paid for books and that was just about it.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 25:18

But like with athletically and then academically, it was pretty much, so you had a combination thing, yeah combination thing, yeah, awesome.

Abi Chipps: 25:22

But I didn't, hardly I have, yeah, very fortunate.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 25:26

One last question, because this was a tough time for all of us that 2020, covid yeah, you were. You had finished your, of course, softball season, you had finished your basketball season, and getting ready for track? Yeah, and March 17th we were out of here. Uh-huh, I kind of looked at it like your class academically. I don't know what they miss much Like you guys had all that.

Speaker 3: 25:49

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 25:50

I think that. But how? What impact did you have for not having that last track season? Or like, how did that?

Abi Chipps: 25:59

I mean at the time, I mean you just think that, oh, this is the worst thing in the entire world. But I mean, I don't know, we missed a prom and graduation got moved. But I mean so we still had graduation and everything, and I don't know, I would have liked to have, it would have been cool to have been able to walk out of the doors on the last day of school with everybody, but I mean that just wasn't realistic. I mean there's no way that it could have happened with everybody. But I mean that just wasn't realistic. I mean there's no way that it could have happened. And you know, like I think that what we knew about it at the time, I think that that was perfect what we did, you know.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 26:34

Oh, I think, yeah, and it wasn't just. I mean, we had great. I just didn't know from the perspective of not getting that last track season. Yeah, I mean, I don't think that that bothered me.

Abi Chipps: 26:46

You kind of had bigger fish to fry. Yeah, I did, and yeah, my wheels were already turning and thinking about what was coming up next.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 26:53

Well, how was that going to Indiana State then? I didn't think about that question before I got here.

Abi Chipps: 27:01

Yeah, well, I would say, the biggest thing was softball, because softball kept us there and, like I said, that paired with how badly I was homesick.

Speaker 3: 27:12

Wow, yeah so.

Abi Chipps: 27:13

I mean that was as soon as I stepped on campus, it was not allowed for us to go home Like it was.

Speaker 3: 27:20

Wow yeah.

Abi Chipps: 27:21

It was a crazy experience, but I mean class wise. I mean we had a lot of hybrid classes. I don't think I had any fully on online classes, I don't think I did. But you know, like that we would have classes where we'd go, you know, two days. We'd go meet Monday and then maybe we'd be online Tuesday or no, I'm sorry Wednesday and Friday. So I mean like it was kind of hybrid. But I would say the biggest thing was softball and there was a couple of times that we had that we had to quarantine. Like there was one day and I still don't understand how this exactly went but we scrimmaged like we split split team scrimmage, and one of the girls on the other team came up positive for COVID and so all the girls on that team had to quarantine. But that was a whole deal because, you know, half of this team is living with the girls that are quarantining on this team, and so it was a whole mess.

Abi Chipps: 28:21

My college roommate whenever me and her, me and Kennedy in the dorms, she had to leave and go to another dorm and it was funny. So we were on the 11th floor in our dorm room and she was across campus on a different like on like the same level or like floor eight or something, on a different dorm room, and she was there for a week and like, literally in the room could not leave for a week. It was horrible and that is horrible, yeah, and I would stand there with the flashlight. And she was there for a week and like, literally, in the room could not leave for a week.

Abi Chipps: 28:49

It was horrible, that is horrible, yeah, and I would stand there with the flashlight and like we could see each other with the flashlights across campus, but it was a crazy, crazy time to be in college, for college sports that is.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 29:02

But yeah, it was crazy. I could see where that would really add to the homesickness. So how many other students were on campus at that point?

Abi Chipps: 29:08

Oh man, I don't know. I mean, comparatively, like to other years, it was a ghost town. But I mean at the time I didn't have any idea. But I mean there was nobody on campus. It was such a crazy time it was a crazy time.

Abi Chipps: 29:24

Yeah, and I mean a lot of kids too, just didn't go at all to class. I mean, if, like the hybrid sense, it's just like everything's online, Like the professors have to put everything online because of COVID in the first place, Cause if a kid comes up with COVID, they have to be able to provide to that kid. So it was a whole.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 29:42

It was a mess, but Wow, I can see where you'd be a little homesick. Oh yeah, it was hard, it was a mess.

Abi Chipps: 29:45

Wow, I could see where you'd be a little homesick. Oh yeah, it was hard, it was very hard, and it was also hard because, you know, like the coaches did not really want all of us hanging out as a team, and so it was also hard to build relationships with those girls at the same time kind of build that team community. It was a hard, hard adjustment to make it was a hard, hard adjustment to make.

Speaker 3: 30:10

So when you?

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 30:11

put things into context. You had the COVID heavy COVID fall start.

Speaker 3: 30:14

You get to the spring and suddenly you're playing against Ole Miss. Yeah and homesick, yeah, yeah, it's understandable.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 30:18

Yeah, it was Well good for you.

Abi Chipps: 30:20

I tell you. It's incredible you survived that on some level as a person. It's hard, it was hard.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 30:30

Did you have that relationship with your coaches?

Abi Chipps: 30:31

that you could kind of feel like that real connect, like that help you keep moving forward. Very much so, yeah, yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 30:34

You had told me that just great things about them, yeah.

Abi Chipps: 30:35

Great things. Um, our coach Pooch, he was wonderful. I had him all four years and, um, we had my junior or, no, sorry, my sophomore year. Two other coaches came in and they were they're quite a bit younger, they were both in their mid-20s and they one was an All-American from Georgia and then the other one played at Indiana and she was a stud too, but they were amazing. I still talk to them. I still talk to Coach. Yeah, so I'm very fortunate with still talk to coach. Yeah, so I'm very, very fortunate with coaches along the way. Yeah, yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 31:11

So we're going to get to the meat of this. This is really maybe some tips and stuff for our parents and families and kids. So we talked about the recruiting process. The first question I'm going to ask is when did that kind of start for?

Abi Chipps: 31:25

you. Well, this is different now because they have at least as far as I'm aware, they still have the September 1st rule. I think of, like your junior years, whenever you could talk to college coaches. And that was kind of weird for me because I was talking to. I can remember talking to Coach Redburn down at SEMO and then the rule went into place and then I could then talk to him again in September. So it was kind of weird, but I would say my sophomore year is whenever I started talking to coaches.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 32:01

Okay, so I'm going to try to sequencing. This is going to be hard because I think that the recruiting stuff for each sport can almost be all over the place from what.

Abi Chipps: 32:11

I've gathered yeah absolutely.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 32:15

When did you consciously say I want to get myself out there to recruit, like you said, you were kind of talking to Coach Redburn how did that even get to the point where they were talking to you, In other words, as a freshman, did you say hey, mom and dad, I want to.

Abi Chipps: 32:32

Yeah, I would say my freshman year of high school is whenever I really was committed to the recruiting process and that was kind of like kudos to my travel ball team and coach, who is actually the head coach of the team here Amanda.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 32:49

Oh, okay.

Abi Chipps: 32:49

Yeah, but she was very good about like making sure that we're getting our emails out and we had like a I don't know like a little box behind the dugout everywhere we went and it had all of our recruiting sheets in it, like how old we are, and our stats, and everything was on it and she organized that for you.

Abi Chipps: 33:07

Yeah, yeah, she did all that, and so at least I'm pretty sure it was her that did all that for us. And that was nice too, that coaches could come up and if they're looking at somebody they can flip through it and pick out the recruiting sheet and they know everything about how she never think about it. Yeah, oh, absolutely. There's coaches walking around, I can't even focus. Yeah, it was.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 33:29

Yeah, absolutely, but so, um, we had talked prior, so for you, there's so many options out there. Uh, before we go any further, I would tell you that my experience with athletes who have gone on to and it's been a while for me, but that it was always at some point the family really took ownership of it, and it sounds like that's your situation as well, that you can't really rely on others at the end of the day, but try to use as many resources as you can. Yeah, you know what I mean.

Abi Chipps: 34:06

Yeah, absolutely, and I think that too, like our coaches, like I think that they put a lot of responsibility on us as well, like as players. You know Like it was? I mean, I can remember going to being on the way, like in a car or on the way somewhere, and my mom telling me you need to be sending emails out right now. Telling me you need to be sending emails out right now, but she would hold me accountable.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 34:28

I understand.

Abi Chipps: 34:28

Yeah, she would hold me accountable absolutely, but, like a lot of that was on us as well.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 34:38

So I had asked you too, because I know I'm not going to go into our situation, but I know that those it was just recommended to us by family in Florida that we worked with a ton tennis stuff that we maybe look at go ahead and getting into the online platform, getting a virtual platform, a program to get our names out there, and I think they were very specific about the sport that we were working with. So did you use a virtual online platform? You, you did, but you didn't live in it.

Abi Chipps: 35:07

I guess would be the right way yeah, at the time, I guess, whenever I was going through the process, everybody was just screaming email, email, email. And so I did have like a, like a, a video, like a, uh, a recruiting yeah recruiting.

Abi Chipps: 35:23

Yeah, highlight video. Thank you, um, and that really just consisted of me hitting the ball. You know, like it was very like basic I would say, but I would attach that in my emails whenever I sent Like I don't know, I don't really know how they do it now, if there is like some type of platform where you can flip through. I really don't know how it is now, but that was just how it was whenever I was.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 35:46

I would say that we started that process of emailing.

Speaker 3: 35:49

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 35:51

And how many responses did you get back through emails? Zero. Yeah, we kind of found the same.

Abi Chipps: 35:56

Yeah and yeah, one thing that I would definitely suggest as far as recruiting goes is just getting out there, like going to camps, going to showcase camps. That's how I got recruited. It was the first time, at least with Indiana State. I was at a showcase camp with several other college coaches there, like I think there might have been five or six maybe college coaches that were there at the camp and so they just kind of hover around and I want to say they maybe like coached like a scrimmage game or something like that. But really like I feel like you, most people, most of the stories that I've heard, you're seen by being seen in person, you know, not through an email. You know, I'm sure most college coaches they get thousands of emails, you know a week from kids and it's really hard to sort through those.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 36:45

I would imagine so I'm going to segue a little bit I would say, the platform changed everything for us yeah um, it kept track of all your emails. It got you linked up to them. Yeah, I would say that there was a lot of responses back that's awesome, yeah um, at least to just kind of inquire and everything and they have your whole package in there. So we give kudos to that group in Florida that we're working with the family in. Florida, but I was just curious about that from you.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 37:14

So back to your situation and I wanted to kind of answer your question. The platforms now they have, they're very organized for you.

Abi Chipps: 37:22

Really, yeah. See, that's totally different than they took.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 37:25

They took a lot of work because you had to. You had a spreadsheet.

Speaker 3: 37:28

Who did you email Right? It's all in there.

Abi Chipps: 37:31

Yeah, that's awesome.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 37:32

And we saw lots of really quick responses back. Yeah, so I wanted to answer that question. Yeah, but so like the SEMO coach saw you in Oklahoma, yeah, For example yeah, just like walking by.

Abi Chipps: 37:46

Yeah, it's, it's, it's crazy, you know, and everybody has crazy stories, you know. Uh, there was a, a girl that I went to school with that she said she had absolutely the best game of her life and he and they're twins actually. So there's two twins and they and they. They played on the same team and and one of them had the best game of their life and one of them had the worst game of their life, and the one got noticed by my coach and they got together and they basically said well, I'm not going without the other one, and they both go and they both end up being all-conference players.

Abi Chipps: 38:25

Oh, good deal yeah so I mean it's just everybody's got a crazy story, it seems like, about how they got recruited.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 38:31

So I wanted to delve a little bit into and I know you're the chaos team that you ended up with. I think sometimes there's a thought that it sounds like they did a good job of instructing you what you need to be doing, but they weren't taking ownership of the process for you.

Abi Chipps: 38:46

Yeah, no, I mean, I would say, other than like the recruitment sheets that they would put on the back of the dugout, it was on us to do the recruiting for ourselves. Okay, yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 38:54

So how much exploration did you have to do? Or did you just kind of get to the end of it and think, how did that happen?

Abi Chipps: 38:59

Absolutely Okay. Yeah, I got to the end of it and I was like how did I get here?

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 39:06

And you had narrowed your choices down to basically three colleges yes, it sounded like you had maybe two, and then Indiana State kind of popped in late.

Abi Chipps: 39:13

Yeah, so I was talking to Murray State and SEMO and I really I was narrowed in on SEMO at the time, so SEMO was offering me more money and so I pretty well had it figured out that I was going to SEMO.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 39:29

SEMO is a heck of a program, yeah.

Abi Chipps: 39:30

Oh, absolutely. And I had girls that I played with that went down there and had great careers and loved it down there. And Coach Redburn is awesome I can't say enough about him. But I was probably about a week away from committing to SEMO and I really don't know why I was dragging my feet on it. I guess I was just waiting just in case, and I'm glad I did. But I went to a showcase camp and Pooch saw me and I think it might have been even the next day. He called me and asked me to come over for a visit, and so my dad was mad at me, because my dad was like well, I don't know why you even want to do this. You're so dead set on going to SEMO.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 40:13

This is going to be a waste of time, a waste of money.

Abi Chipps: 40:16

Yeah, right, exactly. And so I was like dad it can't hurt, like it's only three hours away, just let's go. So we went and I absolutely fell in love with it, and the rest is history. But yeah, and. I absolutely fell in love with it and the rest is history. But yeah, it was. It was a crazy time.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 40:32

And I think let's let's talk about that too, If I think some things just happen. But I think you have to be open to making sure you're going to the right fit for you.

Speaker 3: 40:43

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 40:43

And I know I'm working with athletes in the past that I had the privilege of working with. It was this is your time, because once you go, they own you.

Abi Chipps: 40:52

Absolutely.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 40:53

And so spending a lot of time. And I always put it in phrases like if you were going to be a top-level doctor, because I always felt like some people said, well, you should go here. This place is more prestigious. Because I always felt like some people said, well, you should go here, this place is more prestigious. Like, is staying local better or is it doing what's best for you and going away from home? You know type D, so if you had to talk to parents today and you're having that chance right here, how much emphasis would you place on, like, not worrying about the level, but maybe worrying and really focusing on what's the best fit for the kid?

Abi Chipps: 41:29

Yeah, I mean, I would just say, like, whatever you're looking for or whatever it is that you're prioritizing, like I don't know, like I feel like that's important to know going into this whole process, Like if you're looking to go to a school and you know that you want to become a doctor or you want to become a teacher, or whatever it might be like I think that it's important to focus way more on that, because that's going to be their life. You know, the sport doesn't last forever.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 42:00

No.

Abi Chipps: 42:01

Yeah, and so I don't know, like whenever I was weighing my options, you know, like I knew that SEMO was a great teacher college and so was Indiana State, and like I knew that either way there I'm not going to make a bad decision.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 42:13

Good for you.

Abi Chipps: 42:14

Yeah, which worked out really well. But also, like, as far as athletics go, one thing, that being around a lot of college athletes just in general I mean I still play on a collegiate league over the summer and everything I'm around a lot of uh girls that still are in the sport and one thing, too, is like knowing the coaches and knowing what you want out of coaching. Um, I was very fortunate with my coaches. Um, I would say, like being able to relate to and like being comfortable with your coaches is a really big deal. It's a huge deal and whenever I was going through the recruiting process, one thing that I noticed, that stood out to me on different visits that I went on, was being able to meet with the girls as well.

Abi Chipps: 43:04

So, like the people that I'm going to be surrounded with, because that can absolutely make or break a college experience athletically. Like, if you know that you're going into a team and there's a lot of drama and there's, you know, a lot of disagreement and fighting, that that can absolutely ruin a college experience and it's also hard because you know they have to put on a front and you know that sort of thing. But being around more people and being around the atmosphere more helps a lot going through the process. Because that was one thing that whenever I went to Indiana State on that visit I got to meet quite a few of the girls and I just walked out of there and thought that was the most amazing visit that I'd been on. You know, just like being able to talk with the girls and like kind of getting a feel of what the whole atmosphere of the team is like.

Abi Chipps: 43:55

Like going into those situations. And it's okay to ask those questions because really like you're the one trying to figure out what's best for you. So like you're almost interviewing them in the sense of like you want to figure out what. You're almost interviewing them in the sense of like you want to figure out what you're getting yourself into, what makes this college better than this college, and things of that sort. So it's interesting.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 44:13

I'm going to segue for a second here. I remember dealing with Will Compton at North County and at the time I'll keep it as brief as I can, but at the time Nebraska was changing coaches so he decommitted from Nebraska, opened his recruiting process up and then they were going to hire Bo Pelini, the defense coordinator from LSU. And I said you know, will, why don't you get a hold of some of the players at LSU and see? I said I think the number one question you ask is how they treat injured athletes.

Abi Chipps: 44:40

Yeah, oh, that's huge.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 44:43

And we came up with some other list of questions and he said that he said he got a hold of some like three or four guys down there and he was amazing. He's amazing If you look at his career now. He's amazing at just handling people. But he came back and he goes. They said that you are treated as golden. I just kind of remember some of my experience in college of like somebody got hurt. They were almost kind of, I remember the term being you were dead to the team.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 45:12

Yeah, yeah and uh. I know his experience was spot on. They treated people, they didn't care they. You were hurt, you were healthy, you were part of that team yeah, that's awesome and uh. So I think to your point um, it's not like that's. You know, that's maybe where the recruiting thing really becomes critical. Instead of, well, I'm going to this college to do this, you've got to look at it as a person.

Speaker 3: 45:34

Right.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 45:35

And we really focused on that with Will several years ago, so it's like he did a tremendous job of that and I think that's something if I could share with parents is. I think about Charles Barkley's statement a couple years ago too is that you're going away from home for the first time and you're going to an unknown environment. You better be going to a place you have an opportunity to play and play pretty soon. I'm not saying it's not a fit for everybody, but there's something to making sure you're involved and having that opportunity. You, as an athlete, have to capitalize on it, because when you get there, you don't have the skill set that they have.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 46:10

I'm talking about the other athletes.

Abi Chipps: 46:11

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 46:11

They've been there a while.

Abi Chipps: 46:12

Right, absolutely.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 46:14

Did you ever think I remember? My thought was is I've worked really hard to get to where I had the ability to play college football. But as soon as I got there I realized I don't work hard enough. Yet Even though I felt like I had and I believe I had I didn't believe there was nothing I would have done differently to that point. Did you have that same sensation when you got there?

Abi Chipps: 46:33

I don't know if I would say that or not. Honestly, I think that, like I was prepared, like I don't know, I feel like my, my travel ball coaches really, and yeah, they ingrained in me like be prepared to be there 30 minutes early and stay 30 minutes after, and that was just the expectation. So I would say I was prepared for that. But I mean I would say that the majority of girls at Indiana State at college I would say that they stayed after too. You know, like it was, everybody was prepared for that.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 47:05

Yeah, so I think I spent. I was different. I played just high school sports. Of course I'm a lot older, but the travel ball does probably cause you start to get around those other athletes and be challenged.

Abi Chipps: 47:15

I mean, I'm sure through travel ball.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 47:17

you probably played teams. You're like they're good yeah.

Abi Chipps: 47:21

Oh yeah, absolutely yeah. And that only makes you better too, because I think, you sometimes think that's where I want to be, but so I'm going to close this recruiting process out. Is there anything else you want to add? I mean, I don't think so I'm as far I know. You wrote on there like some advice.

Abi Chipps: 47:39

Um, I would say it's really from, uh, being an athlete.

Abi Chipps: 47:44

It is one of the most stressful times that you can possibly go through, because you're weighing the next four years of your life and it's just it sounds like the biggest deal ever.

Abi Chipps: 47:55

But, um, I would just say to sit back and, like, take a deep breath, because, regardless of the decision that you make, even if, even if you think you're making a wrong decision or thought that you made a wrong decision, I don't I don't think that you can make a wrong decision or thought that you made a wrong decision.

Abi Chipps: 48:09

I don't think that you can make a wrong decision Because, regardless, you're going to learn something, not only about yourself athletically, but also just as a person. You know, like I think, that there's a lot of people that go and go to a college and just it's not the perfect fit and that's okay, because you learn something about what you want and what you want out of you know the whole process. So, even if you might not think that you make the right decision the first time, you still got four more years to make the right decision and there's a lot of people that do it and transfer, and you know, even if you want to drop out and do something completely different if you want to work on a trade or anything like that. Like I think you're just learning more about yourself. So I would just say, take a deep breath and just let it ride out. So that's my advice. I guess that's really good.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 48:55

Yeah, I'm going to try to. Maybe you tell me if you agree with this or not. It's more, and I think that anybody has a certain passion. I always saw your passion with softball.

Speaker 3: 49:06

Anybody has a certain passion.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 49:09

I always saw your passion with softball. But is it fair to say that the softball created those opportunities for you, but maybe more as a person than just like the success in softball, if that makes sense.

Abi Chipps: 49:23

Absolutely yeah. I would say that softball has open opportunities for me, like so many more opportunities than just what seems on the surface. You know, like I mean softball, playing softball got me the coaching job at R7 or whatever. That's just surface level stuff. You know, like I think that softball has just taught me so much about teamwork and leadership and just so many other things that the sport teaches you, and I think that that is what has made me into the person that I am today and has opened a lot of doors for me and opportunities.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:03

So kind of in totality, I know you had a really great experience here with a coach.

Speaker 3: 50:10

We had a good program. I mean, it still is yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:14

I mean you had Coach Rugley who had played college softball, and you had your travel league.

Abi Chipps: 50:26

I'm sorry, I can't think of the name of those things.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:27

And then you had your travel league I'm sorry I can't think of the name of those things and then you had your college experience. How much of that did each level emphasize? Dealing with adversity or kind of building on that mindset Because I love what you were talking about Like it's not going to be perfect.

Speaker 3: 50:43

No.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:44

And having done that college experience in playing athletics, it is not what it seems.

Speaker 3: 50:51

Yeah, oh no.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:52

And it's not as glamorous as it seems.

Speaker 3: 50:54

Right.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:56

You really have to start digging in.

Abi Chipps: 50:58

It is a grind.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 50:59

Absolutely, and so I know you're a grinder and you can handle adversity, but I think, if you're talking to parents, how important is that to emphasize with your kids?

Abi Chipps: 51:11

Oh, I think it's huge and especially if, especially, if they plan to pursue collegiate athletics, like I think that it's, I think, at every level you know, whether it be a junior college, an NAIA Division I, whatever it might be, I think that you know like embracing the grind is a huge part of it. You know, and that's not only athletically but also academically as well, like there's a lot that goes into it. You know, managing the schedule and managing classes and being able to make sure that you get to practice on time, and it's, it's a big deal and it's a lot of responsibility. Um, that is taught young. I would say too, I, if, if, if it's not taught until the day you step on college campus, you're, you're going to be in a whirlwind.

Abi Chipps: 52:03

Um, so yeah, so, um, preparing, preparing a kid for it while they're still young is a big deal. Yeah, and it would be very helpful.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 52:14

I think sometimes we lose that a little bit because of the. You know, when I grew up there weren't as many opportunities for leagues and stuff. We'd go play in the backyard and figure our own rules out Right, fight through it and stuff like that. Yeah, sometimes I think the intervention of the parent to say you know, I and stuff like that, where sometimes I think the intervention of the parent to say, you know, I've always tried to teach my kids it's okay to get your butt kicked every once in a while.

Speaker 3: 52:31

Oh, absolutely yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 52:33

And then, how do you fight your way out of?

Speaker 3: 52:35

it yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 52:35

And that's kind of how we grew up too. It was very much like things are not going to go well. That's really some great stuff there. I'm going to segue a little bit to the college experience itself and you, I'm going to segue a little bit to the college experience itself and you've kind of answered some of this. So if you feel like you've answered it, just let me know. Perception entering versus reality Sounds like you really had some people prepare you for that.

Abi Chipps: 53:00

Yeah, I would say I was prepared for it. I just I didn't know what I was getting myself into as far as like I really just didn't know. Like I felt like going into college was just like a big question mark, like I didn't know. It's just a completely different life than what I had been used to. You know, like I was completely on my own. I had to go to the grocery store by myself. I had to. You know, like I had to drive everywhere by myself. It was just you're thrown out there and you just fend for yourself. Basically, it's your responsibility to go to class, it's your responsibility to just do life things. So in other words, if you got your lunch at home.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 53:44

Mom or dad wouldn't bring you to school.

Abi Chipps: 53:45

Exactly. And yeah, maybe I could talk my roommate into helping me out, but I'm sure somebody likes you there Right, but yeah it's just a.

Abi Chipps: 53:58

It was. I don't know if I really had much of a perception. I guess going into it is, I guess what I'm saying. I really just didn't know Um. You know like I. I guess what I'm saying. I really just didn't know um. You know like I. I guess I knew that. You know you only had to go to cop to classes, you know like a few days a week, um and softball.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 54:16

I knew that that was going to take up a lot of my time talk about that that's the next question I have is yeah, I think that's the one thing that people don't understand if you haven't done, it. I mean this in a very polite way, but they kind of own you.

Abi Chipps: 54:31

Oh yeah, yeah, I mean I thought that it was a lot of time and I knew it was going to be a lot of time, but I mean I would get up. Well, in the fall this is in the fall I would get up and we would lift at 6 am every morning. Okay, and then I'm just. How about I? I'm going to talk about my student teaching experience, because this was the craziest time, student teaching I would get up in the morning. So me and my roommate Kennedy, we roomed together all four years and she was also a teacher.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 55:03

She was also in student teaching, except for when she was posted over there, and you're doing Morse code each other. Yeah, yes, okay, right, she was also in student teaching, except for when she was posted over there, and you're doing Morse code each other. Yeah, yes, okay, right, I'm sorry.

Abi Chipps: 55:10

Yes, okay, yeah, we were split up for a little while there, but we would get up and so we had to lift early in the spring. So in the spring, in the fall, we all lifted early, so we would all get up and we would all as a whole team would get up and and lift at 6 am, and then that would end going into the spring, and so we just kind of fit it in, because that's your actual season. Yes, because that's the actual season.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 55:30

So then, well, yeah, I mean that's your actual team season, when the championships are on the line.

Abi Chipps: 55:36

No, that's in the spring.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 55:37

That's what I meant. Yes, that's why it changed. In the fall you're just.

Abi Chipps: 55:49

Yes, all together 10th in the fall, correct? Yeah, there's not nearly as much going on in the fall, sorry, sorry, but in the spring. So that was whenever we were student teaching and we had to get up and do weightlifting before we had our student teaching day. So we would get up and we would lift at 530. So it would have to be earlier because we had to make sure we got to school on time. So we would lift at 530 in the morning and then we'd go home. Hopefully we had enough time to take a shower and then we'd change into teaching clothes. We would go to school until 3 o'clock or so, we'd get in the car and we would Wow.

Abi Chipps: 56:23

Well and my school was 20 minutes away from where campus was, so I had to drive there, drive back, and then we had practice at 3.30 every day. So I mean it was from one thing to the next every single day. And then I mean with what about the travel. Well, I was going to say the travel, that was a whole other thing, because we were never there, never any Fridays. We were never there because we always played on Friday.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 56:46

Right.

Abi Chipps: 56:52

And most Thursdays we were gone too, because that's when we would travel. So originally I was supposed to be done with student teaching April 11th I think it was in the spring and I had to make up every single day that I did not make it there. So I did not end student teaching until after I was done with the tournament. So we were done with the tournament May 16th, and then I had to come back and then I had like one or two days left of student teaching after that.

Abi Chipps: 57:18

Wow, so it added like a month to my schooling, my senior year. It was crazy but wouldn't trade it for anything.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 57:27

That's all. Yeah, I don't think that's maybe. You said it as well as any, like all the time that goes into it. Yeah, it's crazy, you're putting in at that point, 5, 30 to probably what's 6, 30 every day, seven o'clock, 6, 30, seven o'clock.

Abi Chipps: 57:43

Yeah, it's a long day. It's a long day yeah, it is, but around good people and you're all doing it together for the most part.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 57:54

I think, that's one thing that. I took from my experience too, was the time it takes to do things, and it's more than just the time you're supposed to be there, and I think that that will help you. I know you're looking at pursuing some degrees and stuff, some leadership positions, maybe down the road in education.

Speaker 3: 58:15

I think you'd be a wonderful leader.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 58:18

It's just making sure you enjoy that process, Travel. I know the softball season and I think you've kind of alluded to that, that basically you kind of went into like a series over a weekend right yeah, so we'd play one game Friday, one game Saturday and one game Sunday, okay yeah, and so your weekends home or away were kind of shot, did you guys? Play any games like on Tuesdays or anything um starting conference.

Abi Chipps: 58:45

we would play a few midweek games, but those are usually pretty close, like we play our. Evansville was our closest so we'd play them. Their series was during the week so we would just alternate weeks. So three weeks. We played them on Tuesdays or Wednesdays in the middle of the week.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 59:04

So Natalie and I would look at, because she played some tennis tournaments over at Evansville trying to see if we could see an Indiana State softball game.

Speaker 3: 59:11

Oh yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 59:12

We had one small window and it didn't work out. Yeah, but we kept looking. Anyway, it didn't work out for us. Would you do it again? I think I know that answer, but would you do it again?

Abi Chipps: 59:22

I would absolutely do it again. Yeah, yeah, I wouldn't change anything about it either. I talk about my freshman year being such a handful and it just being just absolutely crazy, and I mean, at points I hated it, you know, but I think that that allowed me to grow so much as a person. You know, like going through that adversity and I think I was very, very fortunate going into it. You know, like I hadn't faced adversity like that adversity and and I think I was very, very fortunate going into it you know, like I I hadn't faced adversity like that before and I've never had to sit on the bench and it's hard.

Speaker 3: 59:56

It's hard.

Abi Chipps: 59:57

And um, and going to that, I mean that that was a lot that I was not really prepared for. But you, just you learn to, you just learn to survive. You know, and going through that I grew so much, not only as an athlete but as a person in general, and still learning to, to be grateful and to celebrate other people's victories. And you know, through that whole process it's it's hard, but it it's absolutely worth it.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:00:26

So I'm going to ask one more question here and this is really, I think, what a lot of us kind of wonder with the different, and it has nothing to do with Indiana State or Abby Chips the softball player, but this whole NIL thing has that. As you kind of see it, and this is not as specific to, like I said, the university you were at- Right. How has that impacted things in the softball world?

Abi Chipps: 1:00:50

university you were at right. How has that impacted things in the softball world? Um, it's a big deal. Uh, it's a huge deal. Um, I don't know how it's gonna change things, but it's gonna change things. I would say like um, there's going to be a lot more transfers and recruiting out of universities than there is straight out of high school, and you know like that might be different sports specific, and this is just my guess, yeah, I mean, I don't know.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:01:17

I think there's a lot of unknowns.

Abi Chipps: 1:01:18

Yeah, but I would say that there's going to be a lot of recruiting within the collegiate world already that there is. So I don't know, within the collegiate world, already that there is. So I don't know the the whole money thing and I don't know, I don't know how that all is going to go, but I project that money is going to Trump, everything else, and so schools I got money are going to be the best. And you know, I it sucks because I worry for, like the mid major schools. I do too, and, um, you know it sucks because I worry for like the mid-major schools.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:01:50

I do too.

Abi Chipps: 1:01:51

And you know, like, there was a girl that I played with all the way through that, you know, I know she could have gone to a bigger school and just like, if the roles were different and NIL was there at the start of my collegiate career, you know, I don't know if she would have been there all four years. You know. So I don't know. Career, you know I don't know if she would have been there all four years. You know, um, so I don't know. I fear for the mid-major schools, um, more than anything, um, but I don't know, I don't know it's almost like it's becoming a farm system yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:02:20

I couldn't imagine the. I don't. I don't know how coaches could well. Well, I've just heard different stories and I'm not going to the negative part of it.

Speaker 3: 1:02:32

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:02:32

But you just hear that the coaches really don't have control anymore. Yeah, like, how do you build a program? Year to year and how do you even like the way you would even evaluate a program would have to be different than it was even five years ago, because I know how it was. You kind of committed and as an athlete you were there.

Speaker 3: 1:02:51

Right.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:02:53

And if you did transfer, you lost a year of eligibility and it was a huge deal. It was a huge deal and now I just, you know, I think about that adversity conversation you were talking about earlier how much of that will be lost in the experience? Absolutely. I also understand philosophical things in general about sports. What are they really for? You know, I think in the old days, years ago, there was still this mindset that it will help you as a person.

Speaker 3: 1:03:18

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:03:19

And by chance, if you happen to make it professionally great. But you've got situations now where people just got drafted in the top ten in the NFL. That said, I'm going to go back and make more money in college for another year Right yeah, it's insane.

Speaker 3: 1:03:32

It is insane.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:03:34

And then kind of that loyalty to the team and just that adversity part too, Like where will people's careers be if they're really good? But they needed that to get over that homesickness or they needed to just learn how to compete a little bit harder, to not be able to sort of grow in a program for four years. Would they ever learn that? As a person?

Speaker 3: 1:03:55

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:03:56

That's kind of where I see it. What's the point of the sports? Is it all about money now?

Abi Chipps: 1:04:02

Right, I don't know, and maybe I'm off on that. I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, you know, I all I know is my opinion and just being in it, and that's really all I know. But um, it's going to be interesting to see how it plays out.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:04:18

Yeah yeah, you probably were on that last edge of um and, like you said, the mid I I fear. I fear for the mid-majors who they recruit, sometimes somebody that went under the radar. That really is beneficial to the program and also is really beneficial to the kid Right, but then the big boys we really need that Just pull them over and pay them to do it.

Speaker 3: 1:04:41

I mean, how do you turn it down?

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:04:42

I know, I mean, it's not a criticism of anybody.

Speaker 3: 1:04:45

Yeah.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:04:46

Anyway, listen. Thank you so much.

Abi Chipps: 1:04:48

Yeah, thank you, this was awesome.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:04:50

I was so looking forward to having this. I love watching kids.

Superintendent Dr. David Haug: 1:04:56

The reason I am in education is I really like to see other people be successful and enjoy things and also try to create the processes and put the right people in the right place so that it's first of all enjoyable but also people are being successful. So it was awesome to watch you get that opportunity. But it's even cooler now to hear on the back end kind of your experience and I hope people at home really take. I'm telling you she's a really most important thing. She's a really good person and I think the only advice I ever had to give you was keep smiling. Don't ever not smile. You'll be fine. She has a great smile. Thank you very much.