Injury wasn't going to halt Cowgirls' Lynch
Despite torn ACL, Lynch will take her place in OSU's lineup
STILLWATER — Sitting in the doctor's office last fall, Oklahoma State softball player Taylor Lynch heard the news, and had only one question.
“Can I play on this?” she asked.
The answer didn't come immediately. Tests and time and thought were needed by all involved to figure it out for sure.
But eventually, Lynch learned she would be able to play her senior season with a torn ACL.
She didn't have to. She could've sat out the season as a redshirt, had surgery, and come back a year from now, healthy and ready to go.
That's not what Lynch wanted.
“Not that I don't want to be here another year,” Lynch said. “I want to be a part of this team, because this team is going to go to the Women's College World Series this year. I wholeheartedly believe that.
“It was an easy decision. I think the 21 girls that surround me every day made it easy. I'm gonna play. Come on, let's start this process.”
Lynch says she hasn't had a bad day yet. Of course, the games don't start until Friday, when No. 21 OSU opens the season in the Houston Invitational, an event that includes five games in three days against Houston, Illinois, Sam Houston State and No. 15 Kentucky.
Lynch probably won't play more than a game a day for now, and she won't be in her usual outfield spot much early in the season, until coach Kenny Gajewski feels more comfortable with it. Pinchrunners and creative coaching moves might be necessary at times.
But Lynch, with a brace on her right knee, will be in the lineup as often as Gajewski thinks she can handle it.
She's fought through a lot just to get to this point, usually putting in a couple extra hours a day of strength training and rehabilitation work.
“She's a tough kid,” Gajewski said. “That's what been bred into her. She'll go out and have another great year.
“All she does is hit. That's all she's ever done here, and she's doing that again.”
Her attitude inspires the teammates around her.
“Seeing her pushing through has been huge,” sophomore Sydney Pennington said. “I don't think she's missed a beat, either. She rehabs every day, and it has been the most awesome thing to see.”
Lynch's biggest motivation to play is “for the girls” — one of the team's slogans this season.
“I need them just as much as they need me,” Lynch said. “This team's been through too much and worked too hard for me to not at least give it a shot to play for them.”