Athlete of the week

After four years in the South Park Blocks, Mandy Hill ends her career as one of the best athletes in Portland State history.

A star on the mound and at the plate, Hill became Portland State’s all-time leader in wins this past season, an honor she can cite in addition to the fact that she was the school’s career homerun and RBI leader before this year even began.

With a host of Pacific Coast Softball Conference awards and an NCAA Regional Tournament appearance in 2006, Hill has accomplished a great deal as an individual and team player at Portland State. Hill says she has also learned many lessons as a Viking, which she hopes will accompany her wherever she goes following graduation this June.

What do you take from your four years at Portland State? I take pride and I take friendships away. I take just the experience. I can’t ever have these four years back–they’re the best four years. I really honestly could not ask for anything more. Everything just worked out perfectly.

What is the greatest lesson you take away as a student-athlete at Portland State? Probably just working hard. You have to practice, and then go out on your own time and practice. There are so many different components–like the weight room. What was the weight room in high school? I never lifted a weight. Now it’s like, if I wouldn’t have lifted weights, I wouldn’t have been as successful as a pitcher or a hitter.

The weight room is pretty important. It wasn’t when I was in high school. It was like, who goes to the weight room? Now it’s like, who doesn’t go to the weight room?

For someone who has never seen you play, how would you describe yourself? Focused. Intimidating. Confident. Just focused and determined. I think it’s me against the batter. There are a bunch of them and I want to beat every single one of them. It’s a fight.

Where does the softball program go from here? I think it can only go up. I think that we have a lot of talent here still, even with the graduating class. Every year it’s going to get stronger and stronger. We have the right team camaraderie right now. We have the desire. We have the right people here who could take us really far.

Talk about how your demeanor changes once you step on the field. I’m laughing and goofy, but as soon as it’s game time, I’m straight-faced and focused. I think it’s like a pure fight with me. It’s all a battle. It’s me against the batter. The only thing I can think about is I need to beat this batter.

Where do you go with your life after graduation? I have a job at a law firm in downtown. Now I’m going to have to work full time-getting paid. I don’t know, though. It’s kind of nerve-racking for me. It’s so different not having to go to practice, not having to go to weights. It’s a whole new ballgame.

I’m just going to relax. That’s my plan. I’m going to come back and have lunch with the girls, and talk and stuff. I’m still going to be friends with them. I’ll still be around. You just won’t see me on the turf doing conditioning by all means.

Who would you take a bullet for? That’s tough. It depends on who is getting shot, I guess. I don’t know. I can’t say one person. I would take one for every single one of my teammates if I had a chance. I could do that. I would make sure it was in the leg or something, though. I wouldn’t want to get shot in the head or something like that.

Where is your favorite place to eat on campus? Chipotle. You know, I really didn’t like Chipotle at all at the beginning. I was like, “It’s gross.” But that’s just the place to go. That’s just where the softball team wants to go. We just like to hang out there. It’s open seating, and all the other athletes go there. It’s like a big social gathering there, I swear. And you get free drinks, so it works out well. Maybe that’s why we all like it.

What was the last thing you cooked? Oh my God. It’s been a really long time. I don’t ever cook. I hate cooking. It was probably pizza about a week ago and I probably burnt it. I have to call my mom and dad, and ask for money all the time. I should have bought stock in Subway.

I just know how to stick things in the oven and turn it on. And I still burn them.

If you could change one rule in softball, what would it be? I wish that if you had two strikes on a batter and they foul one off, that’s strike three. There should be no foul ball, get another pitch. It should be you didn’t hit it fair and now you are done. Because some at bats go 20 pitches, and you’re like, “Oh my God, I cannot pitch anymore.”

Do you read the Vanguard? Yes, every Tuesday through Friday.

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity