Davis decides to follow sister
For The Madera Tribune
Madera Coyotes softball player Joslynn Davis is all smiles after signing her National Letter of Intent to play softball at Bethune Cookman University next season.
Although it seemed natural for Madera Coyotes softball player Joslynn Davis to follow in her sister, Mariah’s, footsteps to sign with Bethune Cookman University, it wasn’t as natural as it seemed.
“I was keeping my options open because I had time,” Davis said. “It came down to the nitty gritty and thought I wanted to go to Bethune.”
Mariah was a four-year starter with the Coyotes and then started for four seasons at Bethune. Joslynn was also a four-year starter with the Coyotes and will continue to play at Bethune.
“The only thing my sister did was show me to them,” Davis said. “They knew about me because of my sister. They watched and they really liked my bat path and were really interested in me. I said, let’s do it. I think it’s cool to go to the same school as my sister.”
Davis also received offers from a few other colleges in the Midwest and from the East Coast.
“I got an offer from University of north Dakota, a walk-on opportunity at University of Montana and a small offer from University of Massachusetts,” she said. “The North Dakota one, we lagged a little bit. UMass didn’t give us enough money for my family to afford. Bethune kind of fit perfect.”
Davis didn’t need to take an official visit to Bethune because of familiarity with the program, already.
“I already visited the school when my sister went there,” she said. “I was just talking to their coach. She said she really wanted me. I was sold.”
Davis plans to become an elementary school teacher and, eventually, move up to the high school level.
“I couldn’t pick what subject I wanted to do. I will figure that out later,” she said.
Davis officially signed her National Letter of Intent early this week. She planned to sign on April 16 when her NLI came in the mail, but her stepmother, Michelle, gave birth that same night.
Like the rest of her teammate, Davis was upset to see their 12-0 softball season abruptly canceled. At the time, Davis was batting .410 with three doubles, eight RBIs with 18 runs scored.
“I was so sad when our season ended,” she said. “It a sad moment. Knowing we could have gone back to Valley and knowing we were good is sad. We didn’t even get an home game this year.”
Davis said she will get the opportunity to compete for a starting job at Bethune.
“I’m just going to have to work my way into a lineup,” she said. “ It was great to see all my hard work pay off.”
Davis will have some company at the collegiate level. Four out of her five teammates have also signed to play softball at a four-year college next year and all five could find themselves playing for a college next spring.
“It’s amazing to have all of us sign,” she said. “The amazing thing is we’ve all played together throwing up. We all got to watch each other grow. What sucks is we worked so hard for this and we didn’t get to finish out our senior year.”
“It would be so cool,” Davis said about meeting up with her fellow seniors playing each other next year. “It’s going to be hard being away from them and playing without them. We have been playing together for a long time. Playing on a different team without them is going to be so different and hard. We have that connection on the field.”
A major adjustment Davis will have to make is not being able to see her family in the stands. Her family has been a fixture at all of her games. Her father, Keith, is her travel coach and is an assistant with the Coyotes softball team.
“It’s good to get away because I’ve been dependent on my family,” she said. “It’s going to help me growing up and mature. It’s going to be hard not having my family there cheering me on. I know they’ll be there in spirit, rooting for me at home, for sure.”
