Nicky Morales, Columbia, senior, shortstop, plans to study environmental engineering at Elizabethtown College or University of Pittsburgh-Bradford
How did you start playing softball, and what has your journey with the sport been like?
Morales: My dad played baseball, and my brother always grew up playing baseball, but my mom wouldn't let me at first, until I moved to the States from Puerto Rico. She allowed me to play when I was started sixth grade and I started playing softball there. It's been OK. I mean I've always had really bad luck with teams, like, school teams and stuff. I always get stuck in, well, teams that aren't that great, that don't really have strong programs, so that's been a struggle for me for most of it.
How was how was it in Colombia, coming from Puerto Rico?
Morales: Yeah, I started out in Lancaster, and then my freshman year of high school, I moved to Columbia, and it was a big difference, because I already went into it knowing that softball wasn't going to be the biggest sport in the school, so I didn't realize how much of a impact it was going to have on me until I actually started playing, and it took a little bit of toll on me. I just learned that, you know, sometimes things just don't work out, and you just kind of have to live with it.
How many siblings do you have and how they affected your sport?
Morales: One younger brother. We've always been interested in the sport. We weren't really competitive against each other, because it's kind of different softball and baseball. There's different things that make it harder than one another. So we just like playing with each other. We enjoy the game. We just get to talk to each other about sports that we like since they're so similar. So that's pretty nice.
And is there some aspect of this year's team you're excited about?
Morales: Honestly, I'm just kind of ready for it to be my last year. It's my last year, it's my senior year. I'm just trying to enjoy myself and not get too worked up, even if nothing really goes our way.
Do you play any other sports?
Morales: No, I tried other sports, but nothing really ever drew me in like softball did. I kind of always wanted to play. I would tell my mom all the time that I want to play softball, and she wouldn't let me until she finally gave in.
Why softball? What do you like about it?
Morales: I grew up with baseball, and that was the sport I just really wanted to play, and my brother's coaches and stuff, they would allow me sometimes to play with them, and they would always tell me, my dad to put me in a softball team or a baseball team to play because I had some kind of talent. So that was why I started. I really wanted to play.
And what's your favorite part of the game?
Morales: I just really love fielding. I like diving. I just like fielding. Yeah, I love diving. It's so fun. I don't care how dirty my uniform is. My mom gets mad at me.
As a senior, what advice would you give yourself as a freshman?
Morales: Don't get too worked up if you don't meet the right people immediately. You'll get there eventually. It will come to you. You don't need to make friends as quickly as you thought you had to. It will get better. It won't stay the same.
So a couple of fun questions. What did you learn in class last week?
Morales: I learned that El Nino, which is like a wind thing in environmental science, that it has a big effect on weather, and they affect the climate a lot. It could make weather a lot more drastic if it picks up.
What are your worries in class this week?
Morales: I probably have a quiz on Tuesday, quiz on AP environmental science.
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