Owen Ulmer – I’m Owen.

Patrick May – And I’m Patrick.

Ulmer – And this is the Athletes of West.

May – We just interviewed star softball player Noor Hacking.

Ulmer – We just sat down with her and talked to her about how the seasons are going, her expectations for the season and her recruiting process.

Ulmer – I’m here with junior softball player Noor Hacking, and the first question we have for you is, growing up, what made you choose to play softball?

Noor Hacking – My brothers played baseball in Little League, and I remember going to their games and being interested in baseball, and that made me want to play teeball, which eventually led to me playing softball. Also, my parents really wanted me to play a sport as well.

May – What has been your experience with high school softball so far?

Hacking – It’s been pretty good, I mean, we had two division one commits, we had a good record, we went to state my freshman year and I did pretty well. I started at third and I had a lot of fun.

Ulmer – You talked about the two division one commits and obviously, they graduated last year. What have you guys done to overcome losing a really talented senior class?

Hacking – I thought we really weren’t going to be that good this year because they were leaving, but that whole class, meaning every school was really talented, and even though we lost them, we are actually 13-4. Other schools are losing their seniors, too, and we were very prepared. 

May – Going back to you saying that you went to state your freshman year, what was that whole experience like?

Hacking – It was pretty cool, especially since I was a freshman and wasn’t expecting that from my freshman year. I was nervous, and even though we got fourth, it was still really fun and we had a blast.

Ulmer – That is still very impressive for sure. Going back to earlier, when you said you started playing softball when you were young, what made you really want to say, ‘I want to be good at this and want to play for a long time’? 

Hacking – When I started playing club ball, I realized I had to lock in if I wanted to be good and play in college. I realized it was really important to me and that I was good at it and I could still in a later time.

Ulmer – Based on what you were saying, would you say it’s a major goal for you to play softball in college?

Hacking – Yeah, for sure.

Ulmer – Is there a dream school you would want to play at?

Hacking – Minnesota, Western Michigan and Cornell. 

May – What has been your favorite memory of softball?

Hacking – Club or high school?

May – We can go both.

Hacking – Definitely state freshman year; freshman year was crazy, I was playing 3rd base with a Michigan commit, which was so cool. Also, I think I really looked up to the seniors and it definitely made for a good environment. I feel like the team was cohesive and had great chemistry. My favorite club memory would be when we went to nationals in California and we got fifth in the best tournament in all club softball. 

May – Who do you play club for?

Hacking – I play for Top Gun. They are an organization out of Kansas City, and they have teams all over the country.

Ulmer – So do you travel to Kansas City to play club?

Hacking – Well, they have a team in Saint Louis, but the whole program is based out of Kansas City, so I practice here sometimes and also in Kansas City. It just depends. We travel for tournaments in the summer and fall. 

Ulmer – Would you say club softball has really helped you develop as a player?

Hacking – For sure, it helped me make connections, and I met new people and learned how to work with people who are not from my area.

May – In the offseason, what does your schedule look like?

Hacking – In the offseason, we usually practice twice a week and lift on the weekends and that’s pretty much it; and in the summer, I’m out of town every weekend.

Ulmer – What position do you play again?

Hacking – Yes, I play third.

Ulmer – What is your favorite part about playing third base?

Hacking – You really have to work the corners, especially the hot corner, and you have to learn good hand-eye coordination because I have to react quicker than other positions. Learning about that is good for me and is really important for anyone who does it. 

May – Who has been your biggest inspiration throughout your career?

Hacking – I don’t really know, maybe my parents. I don’t look up to a specific player, but I did look up to my brothers because they played baseball and because they are older, they want it for me just as bad as I want it myself. It’s really motivational to me because I know they care, and I really care, so it inspires me.

Ulmer – You said you were a freshman on varsity, correct?

Hacking – Yes.

Ulmer – What are the challenges to that, and were there any moments when you were like, ‘I don’t know if I can do this, I want to drop down,’ or were you all cool the entire time?

Hacking – When we were in our district championship freshman year, we were down 5-3 and there were two outs and it was the bottom of the seventh and I was up and I was like shoot, their were people on first and I was like shoot, I have to get this runner in and I hit a pop up right over the second baseman’s head which turned out to be a double answer held the runner. They then walked [alumnus] Lily [Bell], then [senior] Elena [Potsou] hit a double and made me think if I had not hit that double, state probably would not have happened.

Ulmer – So that was a really cool moment for you.

Hacking – Yeah, I was definitely freaking out then.

Ulmer – It’s pretty cool you were a freshman with all those people.

May – Coming up as a junior, has the recruiting process started at all for you?

Hacking – Yes, coaches can contact me Sept. 1.

May – How is that looking?

Hacking – I got an offer from Western Michigan, and I don’t know if I’m gonna go there yet, and I just got an invite from Cornell.

May – Thank you for listening to Athletes of West.

Ulmer – Go watch Noor play softball and do what she does best.