Southmoreland grad forced out of softball after 3 seasons

Adeline Nicholson had a decision to make, but this wasn’t quite like choosing between taking a rip at a 3-0 pitch or chancing a walk.

No, the former Southmoreland softball slugger came to a crossroads in her playing career and made a harsh, yet potentially life-changing choice to step away from the game.

Suddenly, her playing days are done.

“I don’t even know if I can put the feeling into words,” said Nicholson, who would have played her final season at Morehead State (Ky.) this year. “I have been playing year-round since I was 9 years old. A world without playing softball is unfamiliar territory. I did a lot of reflecting, list-making, and journaling to come to the conclusion to be done. There were a lot of tears prior to my decision, but when I finally had the conversation with my coaches, not a tear was shed. It was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulder … literally.”

Nicholson had surgery in the summer to repair a torn labrum in her right shoulder. She also had anchors inserted to repair a fractured shoulder socket.

After going a few rounds with physical therapy, the power-hitting first baseman was poised to return. But nagging pain returned, and the thought of having to go through another year of discomfort led her down a path to clarity.

“The pain was still there when I threw and, unfortunately, when I would hit,” she said. “In a dream scenario I would’ve been able to DH and push through the pain, but with hitting comes baserunning.

“I was not able to dive or slide into bases yet, so only hitting was not an option.”

Before the surgery, Nicholson, who played her first two years of college softball at Slippery Rock, was unable to lift her arm above her head “on a good day,” and said some tasks were simply “impossible.”

“Taking off my jersey after games, washing my hair and lifting anything above shoulder height had turned into painful and time-consuming tasks,” she said. “With the progress I had made after surgery, I did not want to risk getting back to that point again.”

A cleanup hitter who saw some time in the leadoff spot, Nicholson was leading the Eagles in batting average (.436) and had a home run and nine RBIs when the coronavirus pandemic wiped out Morehead State’s season 16 games in.

She also was leading the Eagles with a .522 on-base percentage. She was 17 for 39 at the plate.

“Addy was a great student-athlete and still is a great student-athlete,” Morehead State coach Samantha Jones said. “Her work ethic, personality, experience and skills will be missed. Injuries can be challenging, and she has been through a roller-coaster.”

Nicholson wants to make it abundantly clear she is not giving up the game completely.

“I’m just seeing the game in a different light,” she said.

She plans to continue coaching in the summer and fall with Team Pennsylvania, an organization for which she played. Teams at the 11-, 14- and 18-under divisions have had Nicholson on staff since 2019.

She said Team PA helped her land a scholarship to Morehead State.

“Lucky for me, I still had coaching to fall back on,” she said. “I don’t feel as though I quit softball, but I feel like I get to be a part of the game in a new position. Instead of being between the lines, I get to be on the sideline helping other girls, just like me, find their love for the game.”

Nicholson also plans to work in Morehead’s athletic department, where she will help create softball graphics — another way to stay attached to the game.

She worked a pair of internships in the fall: in the university’s media relations department and in social media with Playa Society, a women’s sportswear brand out of Boston. The second internship is ongoing. She plans to graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in strategic communication.

“We respect her decision to move along with her professional career as she strives to be one of the best marketing employees in the country,” Jones said. “We are proud of all she has accomplished on and off the field. We know she will make any company better because of her strong attributes.”