Rochester, Mn--
As the Minnesota College Athletic Conference heads into the summer, our office would like to take the opportunity to recognize some of the many people who help make the MCAC a league of opportunity, community and innovation.
Over June and July, please keep an eye out for our special 'MCAC Profiles'. These stories offer a chance to learn more about the coaches, administrators, support professionals and others who have impacted their teams, campus and communities in a positive fashion around the Minnesota College Athletic Conference.
Today's profile: Jenna Massingill, who was recently appointed the head softball coach at Hibbing Community College.
Jenna Massingill, a stand-out athlete from Hibbing, Minnesota, recently spent the 2017 Minnesota College Athletic Conference softball season as the understudy for Steve Rannikar, the head softball coach at Hibbing Community College. After completing the season in the 'coach-in-waiting' role, Massingill stepped into the lead spot in the dugout in a planned succession within the Cardinal's program. We recently caught up with Coach Massingill to learn more about her -and her new leadership role - at Hibbing Community College.
How was your experience as an assistant coach this year, knowing you'd be taking over the steering wheel once the season was complete?: JM- "My experience this year was all I could have asked for it to be. I was able to coach with my fomer coach from HCC and learn the ropes from him. I think Steve prepared me for the head coach job and I am so glad he was the one I was able to coach with."
Did you play other sports growing up?: JM- "Throughout high school I played volleyball and softball consistently from 7th through 12th grade." Massingale also noted she came back out for basketball at Nashwauk-Keewatin high school her senior year, and was able to go on to compete for HCC in basketball one season. In all, Massingill competed in one hoops seasons at Hibbing, along with two complete years of softball and volleyball for the Cardinals. The all-round athlete then parlayed her softball skills into an opportunity at NCAA Division II Bemdji State, a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
What does 2017-18 hold for your team? JM- "(It) will be a development year, not just for me, but for the program as well... Along with our returners, there will be some incoming players who will be a positive impact...I believe this could be a very good season for us."
Coach Massingill shared a similar observation of the MCAC North softball race as many others throughout the league; the Northern Division in softball has a high level of parity and that the North is..."so interesting in the fact that on any given day anybody can win."
Another notable influence on Coach Massingill's playing, and indirectly her coaching career, was that of her grandfather, Dan Brim. In fact, it was her grandpa who set Massingill up with her first pitching coach Larry DePaulis, guiding her to lessons in the backyard with DePaulis. The rest, as they say, is history: JM- "I rarely played other positions because pitching seemed like a very good fit for me... After playing one year on the JV (as an 8th grader), Massingill, "was ... put in the circle as a freshman on the Varsity team." Much to the chagrin of northern Minnesota hitters, Massingill rarely left the pitching rubber for the rest of her time as an athlete.
Massingill's success as a hurler drew notice from four-year schools both in and outside of Minnesota; she recalled that the recruiting attention from distant programs was likely to result in playing somewhere other than the land of 10,000 lakes in college.
However, that all changed significantly when her grandfather fell ill towards the end of her high school career. At that point, the future HCC Cardinal decided to ..."stay home and stay close to family and spend the time left with him. After completing my two years at HCC I moved on to play Division II softball at Bemidji State University..."
An elbow injury resulted in a red-shirt year with the Beavers, but Massingill rebounded to successfully complete both her NCAA eligibility and her education at Bemdiji State. To cap off a playing career already deep in experience and success, Massingill then traveled across the pond to play and coach in Sweden. When it came time to leave Stockhom, she found her way back to the U.S. and the Iron Range, where she settled in as the 'next softball coach' in Mike Flaten's Hibbing Community College athletic department. After a year to learn the ropes under her mentor, Steve Rannikar, Massingill is eager to put her stamp on the program.
While most in northern Minnesota will enjoy the time on the lakes and woods this summer, one can be certain that Jenna Massingill and the HCC Cardinal softball team will have one eye toward the fall, when the first practices for a new squad, and and new head coach, will be here sooner than later.
For final 2017 MCAC Softball standings, please visit this link.
For this, and more MCAC Profiles this summer, be sure to check in on www.mcacsports.org and our Facebook and Twitter feeds.
Story courtesy of MCAC Sports