Kristen Mihm
Katie McWhirter
By Josh Lowden
If you’ve followed Monrovia softball in the past decade, you would know that from 2004-2007, the Lady Cats were headlined by a group of five phenomenal athletes: Katie McWhirter, Samantha Rogers, Brittany Bateson, and the Mihm sisters, Courtney and Kristen, being dubbed the “Fab 5.”
The five girls led Monrovia to their glory years, taking them to quarter and semi finals.
While three of them ended their careers years ago, McWhirter and Kristen Mihm took their passion to the next level, with McWhirter at UC Santa Barbara and Mihm at Cal State Northridge.
At UCSB, McWhirter continued to play outfield, but mostly appeared as a designated hitter. As a true freshman, she batted .259 overall. She improved on her hitting in her sophomore campaign, hitting a career best .287 overall, and .300 in conference, earning her First Team All Big West Honors.
“As a sophomore you never dream that such an award will be given to you,” said McWhirter. “It was a huge honor for me because the award showed that other coaches throughout the conference considered me one of the two best designated hitters in the whole conference.”
After her sophomore campaign, McWhirter found her production go down. After being hit on the wrist by a pitch her freshman year, the injury progressively got worse, resulting in a diminished role on the team.
McWhirter at UCSB
“We thought it was broken. But we got x-rays and (found out) it wasn’t. What we did find was that the ulna bone in my arm is shorter than my radius, so I had extra cartilage in my wrist. When I got hit it damaged all that extra cartilage so I have a hand and wrist full of lose joints.”
The injury not only takes its toll on the field, but also while she is doing everyday tasks. She gets discomfort when writing or typing for long periods of time.
Not being one to look for excuses, McWhirter made sure it did not interfere with her schooling. Upon arrival, she quickly learned that not only was the university competitive in athletics, but also in academics.
“Many think of UCSB as a party school when in reality it is one of the most critically acclaimed colleges in California.”
While McWhirter was enjoying the beaches of Santa Barbara, Mihm found her success in the valley at CSUN. The coaches made use of her skills by making her a utility player, making appearances in both the outfield and on third base.
While the team struggled at times her senior year, Mihm continued to produce consistently. Though finishing 22-31, she finished the season leading the conference with an astonishing .463 batting average, earning her Second Team Big West Honors. She finished the season with new career highs with 22 runs, 36 hits, eight doubles, three home runs and 18 RBIs for the season.
“I’m really excited to be selected second team all conference,” said Mihm. “I’m really happy to finish off my career at CSUN on a high note.”
While being a division one athlete is hard and takes a toll on you, Mihm really enjoyed the experience.
“It was difficult to juggle softball and school. But without softball, I feel like it would be really boring just to have school work.”
While many have the misconception that student athletes are given everything, Mihm refutes the claim, living it firsthand.
“The biggest lesson I have learned since I have been in college is that nothing is ever just given to you,” said Mihm. “You have to work hard for things you want.”
Both of their paths would cross every year. With both schools being members of the Big West Conference, Mihm and McWhirter found themselves playing each other every year.
McWhirter is 7-5 against Mihm.
Mihm at CSUN
“It was cool playing against her since we played together on the same team in high school,” Mihm said of McWhirter. “We both played with each other before that and practically grew up together playing softball. It’s exciting to see someone else in the same conference as me and just knowing that they came from the same place I did.”
With both of their playing days over, Mihm and McWhirter have shifted focus to life after softball.
Mihm is finishing up her degree in business management and plans on working for her dad’s crime scene cleaning business. “Not cleaning of course,” joked Mihm, “but I would want to learn how to run the business”
After finishing up her degree, Mihm wants to take a break for awhile, but will eventually attend grad school and study marketing.
McWhirter is a history major and aspires to one day be a kindergarten teacher. If not, she is content on teaching History at the high school level.
“The idea of touching kids’ lives and making a positive change,” said McWhirter, “is something that I truly look forward to.”
She plans to move back home to save money before working towards her credential at a local college.
Playing softball most of their lives, they will miss playing, but both are ready to move on.
“Though I love the sport, it is time to start a new chapter in my life which I am excited for,” said McWhirter. “It will be weird not having softball but there is no way this sport will ever not be around. It’s apart of me and who I am and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
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