Inner Circle

Where are they Now? Sammy Marshall, Utility Chicago Bandits

Sammy Marshall

The National Pro Fastpitch League (NPF) takes place from when players report for practice in mid-May and goes through the Championship Series at the end of August. When looking at the season as a whole, it’s roughly three months of actual games, and it sure goes by fast. So what do the players of the NPF do the other eight and a half to nine months out of the year? The “Where are They Now?” Column covered by Fastpitch News will focus on several NPF Players a month, providing fans with updates and insights on what their favorite Pro Athletes are up to in the lengthy and quiet off-season months. Up Next: Sammy Marshall, Utility for the Chicago Bandits.

Sammy Marshall played four years for WIU before being drafted by the Chicago Bandits in the 2015 NPF Draft (Image courtesy of: WIU Athletics)

Sammy Marshall recently completed her second season in the NPF with the back-to-back World Champions, the Chicago Bandits. Marshall grew up in Illinois and had her dreams set on becoming a Professional and playing for the Bandits from a young age. Marshall played club softball for the Beverly Bandits and went on to have a standout four-year career at Western Illinois. At Western, Marshall set Program and Summit League records with stolen bases (134) and runs scored (168). She was also named Summit League player of the year twice, as well as a four-time All-Summit League First Team member in her four-year campaign.

In 2015 Marshall was drafted by the Bandits and her speed and athleticism has since made a huge impact on the franchise. In 2016, Marshall was named a co-recipient of the Rally Spikes Award after leading the NPF in stolen bases for the season.

In the 2016 off-season months, Marshall served as the head coach of a high school team in Illinois while working for the Bandits. This off-season, she moved to Tampa, Florida where she is the graduate assistant at Saint Leo University. See below:

FPN: Where are you spending your off-season months?

SM: I’m currently living in Tampa, FL.

FPN: What is your employment commitment in the off-season?

Marshall started in the outfield during the 2016 Chicago Bandits back-to-back Championship season (Image by: Dina Kwit, Chicago Bandits Photographer)

SM: I work at Saint Leo University as the softball teams Graduate Assistant. Saint Leo is a Division II school located just north of Tampa.

FPN: Do you believe coaching at the college level is helping you develop as a player?

SM: Absolutely, and I believe the opposite is true as well; I believe that playing is making me a better coach. The best part about this game is that you can never know it all, so I’m always learning. Whether it’s a new drill that I can implement into my own personal practices, or new adjustments to make into my swing, getting to learn and coach under Erin Kinberger has been truly rewarding as a coach and player. Also, because I am still playing Professionally, I feel like I can relate to the girls I coach. The same bad habits we’re working on breaking as a team, are the same one’s I find in my own game. Coaching at Saint Leo has without a doubt made me a better coach and player.

FPN: How hard is it for you to balance school, coaching, and staying in NPF playing shape?

SM: It is definitely a challenge. Playing a sport in college, you learn to block off time for things as well as become very time oriented. I love routines and once I found one that I liked, balancing all three became easier. A typical day this offseason would be getting into the office around 9 am, working until about 11:30 am, getting a quick hour lift in, grab lunch, work a few more hours in the office before heading out to practice around 3 pm. After practice, I would spend a few hours on my h

Marshall showing off her speed during a Bandits home game during the 2016 NPF Season (Photo by: Dina Kwit)

homework and hopefully be done with enough time to sit and watch a little TV before bed.

FPN: You played DI College Softball for Western Illinois, how much have you learned about the DII level since being a part of the Saint Leo coaching staff?

SM: As far as the game goes, it’s the exact same. The majority of the differences I’ve noticed between Divisions are post-season tournaments and scholarship allotments. In Division I, the WCWS is based so that the best eight teams in the nation make it to OKC. All eight of those teams could be from the same conference, depending which regional they come out of. While that never happens, it is possible. However, the way Division II works, it is the best team from each region that makes it to the final tournament where the national champion is crowned. For example, one team from the south region, one team from the Midwest region, one team from the northeast region, etc. will make the tournament. It is my understanding that this is done so that there aren’t eight teams from the same region or conference competing against each other in the tournament; instead, each region has a representative to compete for the National Title. Finally, Division I schools, if they are a fully funded institution, are given 12 full-ride scholarships to split up, however, they would like, while Division II’s scholarship allotment is 7.2 if fully funded.

FPN: Why is it important for people to be educated on DII Softball?

SM: Unfortunately, I feel as though Division II gets a bad rep because they’re not Division I. I was guilty of this as well when I was being recruited, but when coaches, parents, and players hear DII, they automatically turn their ears off because they believe it’s DI or nothing. This past fall, while recruiting, a woman handing out player profile sheets asked who I was with and as soon as I said DII, she said her girls are only interested in Division I and moved along to my friend I was standing with who coaches at a DI school. She didn’t give me the time of day despite Leo’s successful national (8th) and regional (2nd) rankings the previous year. Long story short, I guess I would want people to educate themselves on every school that is showing interest in them, no matter the division. My girls at Leo can flat out play and I truly believe they could contend with Division I schools.

Marshall pictured sliding into home plate for a walk-off win against the Dallas Charge in 2015, is anxious and excited for summer of 2017 (Photo by: Dina Kwit)

FPN: What are you most looking forward to when thinking about the upcoming 2017 college season?

SM: I’m excited to be a part of the Saint Leo program. Working day in and day out with these women in the fall, I’ve seen their growth in only a few months time. I’m so anxious to finally get out there and see what these girls can do. I’m sure every coach says this about their players, but this is a really special group and I couldn’t have asked for a better one to start my college coaching career with.

FPN: How do you stay in playing shape during the lengthy off-season months?

SM: Last year, staying in shape was so easy because I had The Academy (Chicago Bandits trainers) any day of the week I wanted to go workout. This year, finding time has been much more challenging, but when I do, I like to lift and do interval sprint workouts. Speed has always been my forte so focusing on quick and explosive movements when lifting as well as the hill, change of direction and flat sprints are the main focuses of my workouts.

FPN: Congratulations on your Rally Spikes Award from the 2016 NPF Season. It’s no secret you are known for your speed in the NPF League. What do you plan to bring to the upcoming 2017 season?

Marshall pictured with AJ Andrews at the 2016 NPF Banquet. Both were named co-recipients for the Rally Spikes Award after leading the league in stolen bases (Photo by: Jade Hewitt)

SM: For this upcoming season, I don’t necessarily plan to bring anything new but I do plan to be better. Be better at finding a way on base, be better at stealing bases, be a better outfielder, and continue to be as good of a teammate as I can. Going into year three, I think I can officially call myself a veteran so I’d also like to bring a little leadership into the 2017 season.

FPN: How many days a week do you go to the beach?

SM: I don’t go to the beach as often as I’d like because of lack of time, however, being only 10 minutes away from the beach definitely has it’s perks when I need a quick get away!

FPN: Anything else you would like to add?

SM: Go Saint Leo Lions and Go Bandits!!!

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