NEWBERRY — Get to know Newberry College softball players Ashley Willis, Sydney Patterson and Shannon McCann.
Name: Ashley Willis
Major: Middle Level Education
Favorite Food: Chips and queso
Willis is a native of South Carolina and is entering her first year with the Wolves’ softball program.
“I decided to come to Newberry because I wanted to play softball and I knew they had a good teaching program.” She said, “I also fell in love with the school itself.”
The Lexington product played softball for River Bluff High School and travel ball for the S.C. Jets. During her time in high school she lettered over six seasons, was recognized for her elite defense, named Defensive Player of the Year and named MVP her junior year. Willis also earned All-Region and Coaches Award honors over the course of several seasons.
Her success can be traced back to continuously practicing and striving to get better.
Some interesting facts about Ashley are…
She has completely memorized the lyrics to “Party in the USA” by Miley Cyrus. She cheers on the South Carolina Gamecocks and favors Bethany Hamilton. Her pre-game ritual consists of playing hacky sack and saying the Lord’s Prayer with the team. Her favorite hobbies are hiking and playing volleyball when she isn’t playing softball. She also likes to knit.
Her greatest athletic moment/achievement is getting named Female Athlete of the Year her senior year of high school.
Name: Sydney Patterson
Major: Biology
Favorite food: Krispy Kreme doughnuts
Patterson is another South Carolina native beginning her collegiate softball career at Newberry.
“I came to Newberry because I wanted to play softball and fell in love with the campus,” said Patterson.
Hailing from Easley, she played softball at the local high school and travel ball for Team FCA. She won All-Region Player spanning several seasons, earned Team Offensive Player of the Year for the 2015-2016 season, and was a six-year letter.
Patterson attributes her success to focusing daily on the little things.
Some interesting facts about Sydney are…
She enjoys playing hacky sack with the team before games, cheers for the Cubs, and likes to sleep. Her favorite athlete is senior outfielder Shannon McCann. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is the song she has completely memorized. Patterson can also juggle.
Name: Shannon McCann
Major: Biology
Favorite food: Chocolate
McCann comes from Horseheads, N.Y. and is finishing up her last year at Newberry.
“I came to Newberry because I wanted to come somewhere down south away from home,” she said.
Prior to Newberry, she batted .284 with 16 RBIs in 37 contests. She was also a four-year letter winner.
Her success comes from being focused and working on what she can do personally to better the team.
Some interesting facts about Shannon are…
Her pre-game ritual is playing hacky sack with the team. Her favorite athlete is Derek Jeter and she cheers for the Yankees. She has memorized almost everything from Jason Aldean. In her down time, she likes to watch Netflix. In high school she was in orchestra and can also juggle.
Her greatest athletic moment/achievement is her JUCO team making it to Nationals two years in a row.
