With 2,890 miles separating Wolfpack senior Kristine Bechtholdt’s hometown of Ridgefield, Wash. and her new home on the softball team at N.C. State, she has had to make several adjustments both on and off the field.
The right-handed slugger has relied on fellow teammates as well as her coaches in order to make the lengthy transition to the east coast smoother.
“It really wasn’t that big of a change for me just because everyone was so friendly,” Bechtholdt said. “My parents have been able to come to a lot of my tournaments and games so that has made it easier.”
Upon her graduation from Prairie High School in 2006, Bechtholdt chose to join the Wolfpack over other schools including perennial softball powerhouse Arizona State. She instantly became a contributor at second base her freshman year, starting 30 games for coach Lisa Navas.
“I really liked [coach] Navas,” Bechtholdt said. “I wanted to come somewhere that I was wanted and where my position was open. Every other school I looked at was a plane ride away so I felt N.C. State was the best fit.”
Following her freshman campaign, Bechtholdt made a transition from second base to the outfield, which enabled her to utilize her strong throwing arm more effectively.
Along with a strong arm, Bechtholdt possesses great speed that allows her to have a big impact on the game defensively, even when she might not be hitting the ball as well as she would like.
“She covers a lot of ground out there in the outfield,” Navas said. “This past weekend against Virginia Tech, she ran down and caught a ball everyone thought was going to drop in for a double. She has been a tremendous asset to our team defensively.”
Bechtholdt experienced a very successful first season in the outfield during her sophomore year, being named to the ACC All-Tournament team as well as hitting the first ever walk-off home run at Curtis & Jacqueline Dail Stadium.
Success followed Bechtholdt into her junior season as she led the Wolfpack in slugging percentage and home runs, while committing just one error in the outfield.
Bechtholdt has unfortunately been nagged by injuries in her senior campaign, but is finally getting healthier as the season progresses. She is currently batting .256 with two home runs, one of which was a walk-off home run in the first game of the season against Providence.
As a senior, Bechtholdt offers leadership and experience, which will play a vital role for the Wolfpack as it enters ACC competition. The Pack’s record currently stands at 17-13 overall, and 1-2 in the ACC.
“It has been a pleasure watching her grow up over the past four years,” coach Navas said. “She is a very determined kid and always brightens up a room when she smiles.”
Bechtholdt and the Pack travel to UNC Greensboro (10-14) today to take on the Spartans in a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. State then travels to Chapel Hill this weekend in a three game series against rival North Carolina (22-8) in the team’s first conference road test.
“This is the point in the season where everyone starts buckling down,” Bechtholdt said. “It is a totally different mindset when it comes to ACC competition. We have nothing to lose so we are going to play with a lot of enthusiasm and keep having fun.”
