Jan. 8, 2013
Softball Countdown: Chelsea Lyon
- Read the January issue of Hawk Talk Monthly
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPad/iPhone app!
- Download your Iowa Hawkeye Android app!
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
In our countdown to the start of the 2013 softball season, we will feature all 24 Hawkeyes over the next month.
Chelsea Lyon is a senior pitcher from Broken Arrow, Okla. Lyon enters her senior season ranking 10th in school history with 282 career strikeouts.
Lyon has made 93 career appearances inside the circle, with 68 starts. She has tossed 40 complete games and holds a career 2.97 ERA in 440.1 innings pitched. In 2012, Lyon ranked eighth in the Big Ten in ERA (2.61) and opposing batting average (.238), and 11th in innings (169.0) and strikeouts (114). She posted a career-high 10 strikeouts in the 7-5 win over Central Michigan on Feb. 18 and tossed a career-best 10 innings against Illinois on April 1. Lyon went 2-0 with a 0.44 ERA in Iowa’s three-game sweep of Illinois last season (March 31 – April 1).
Iowa opens the season Feb. 8 in Houston, Texas. The Hawkeyes face Lipscomb and UT Arlington at the Hilton Houston Plaza Classic.
What is it like working with Coach Looper and the coaching staff?
“Coach Looper is an excellent coach; she is full of life, energetic, and you can tell that she truly loves the sport of softball. She chose the other two coaches to help her embody a coaching staff that is knowledgeable about the sport, yet still has the energy and the drive to really help a young group of girls like us be excited about our sport.”
What was the key factor in your recruitment that led you to Iowa City and the Hawkeye softball program?
“There were two key factors that led to my recruitment: one, the campus and the availability of classes for pre-med students, and two, the girls on the softball team.”
What is the team goal for 2013?
“The team goal is to be Big Ten champions, which will, in turn, get us into NCAA regionals.”
Is there any significance to the jersey number you wear?
“It is the number I was issued my freshman year of high school, and it has stuck ever since.”
How is your academic path coming along?
“It is coming along great. After this semester, I will be done with all of my major requirements; next semester will be full of minor requirements for my double minor. I am majoring in health studies and double minoring in Spanish and human relations. I am planning on going to graduate school for health care administration next year.”
Who is the most influential person in your life?
“My mom.”
What is your first softball memory?
“Telling my mom that I didn’t want to practice anymore and I didn’t want to pitch. A few months after that I decided I wanted to start it back up again.”
Do you have any hobbies?
“I love to read fiction novels, and I love to do very adventurous things such as skydiving and cliff jumping.”
Who is your favorite professional athlete?
“My favorite professional athlete right now is Lolo Jones. I recently watched a documentary about her, and she has persevered through so many hardships and tragedies in her life that could have set her back, but only made her stronger. She has become the athlete she is today because of her drive to push through all the obstacles and believe that she can be the best.”
What is your favorite place to be on campus?
“Either home or downtown; Iowa City has so much culture in downtown, and there is always something interesting going on, whether it be an outdoor jazz festival or a dance group or a movie on the Pentacrest lawn.”
As a spectator, what is your favorite sport?
“College football.”
Do you have any superstitions, on or off the playing field?
“My routine before the game has to be the same each time, and if I eat a certain food before a game and I do really well, for the next few weeks I will eat that exact food.”
Most memorable softball memory?
“Hitting my first grand slam; it was in summer ball. I hit the grand slam, and after I touched home plate I ran out of the dugout to the stands and hugged my mom, who was crying.”
What would be your ideal career?
“My ideal career would be to be in an administrative position at a hospital.”
What is one word that describes you?
“Outgoing.”