May 3, 2006

When Janessa Roening stepped up to the plate for her first at bat at Lower Columbia College in Longview, Wash., she began her college softball career with a surge of confidence and slammed her first career home run. Roening almost didn't play college softball because she wasn't recruited out of high school. It was her mother's and a friend's encouragement that helped Roening decide to give softball at Lower Columbia a shot. She walked on to the team and the rest is history.

While Roening, an All-Big 12 First Team player, may have debated whether or not to continue playing ball after high school, she remembers realizing softball was the sport for her while playing on an all-star team at age 12. After she decided that softball was her sport, she knew the outfield would be the best position for her.

"When I was younger, I would play with my Dad in the backyard," Roening said. "He would throw the balls sky high and I loved it. I always wanted to play catcher but they would never let me. I was too aggressive and would stick my hand out there. Any chance I get though, I play catcher."

Roening, a native of Port Angeles, Wash., transferred to Missouri after a two-year stint at Lower Columbia. She decided on Missouri after participating in several of Tiger Head Coach Ty Singleton's camps in Washington.

"I visited the school after that and fell in love with it," Roening said. "I especially liked that it had the brand new business school."

Soon after joining the Tiger team, Roening began to make her mark on Missouri softball. One of her favorite memories is when she helped contribute to a two game sweep of the fourth ranked Texas A&M Aggies last season. Roening recorded the game-winning hit in a 6-5 victory over the Aggies in the first game of the series. She came back swinging the next night, hitting a two-run home run on the way to yet another Tiger victory over the Aggies. She loves nothing more than helping her team succeed on the field.

"It's a good feeling to know you can contribute," Roening said. "The thing with our team is if one person gets it going we catch on. As a team we came together and I had a few hits at the right time."

After the series against Texas A&M last season, Roening was honored as the USA Softball National Player of the Week, an award she calls the most prestigious of all.

"It was amazing," Roening said. "My Mom happened to be in town so that was awesome. I was very honored."

In addition to the series against Texas A&M, the games Roening has played against Mizzou's biggest rival, the Kansas Jayhawks, stick out as well. She didn't quite understand the rivalry when she first arrived in Missouri being that she is from Washington, but she enjoys the heated competition now.

"I didn't know much about the rivalry before I got here but then with football and basketball I realized how much it meant to the school and the people of Missouri," Roening said.

In games against the Jayhawks, Roening has made significant contributions to keep the rivalry intense. Last season, she hit a three-run home run in the second game against Kansas, providing the only runs in a 3-0 victory. This season, she had two hits, two stolen bases and scored a run to win 4-0 at home.

Roening has had much success in her softball career especially at Mizzou where she was voted to the All-Big 12 First Team and the Big 12 All-Tournament team last season. While she has found success on the field she realizes it is not the most important thing in life. Danica, her older sister and role model, has taught Roening a lot about life.

"She was born with a birth defect and I admire her," Roening said. "When I strike out it's the end of the world, but its nothing compared to what she goes through. She's so strong and deals with stuff so much better than I do."

From playing softball and watching her older sister all these years, she has learned a valuable lesson about life on and off the field: Hard work pays off. Roening hopes she can instill this message on her teammates through her daily grind to be the best player possible.

"I just hope they realize how important it is to go out and give it your all," Roening said. "There are worse situations to be in, like the soldiers in Iraq. I want the team to remember when I was out there I worked my tail off every time I was out there and I realized how lucky I was. Hard work pays off and people do notice."

She hopes that hard work will help her succeed in her career after college. Although her she will be graduating with a degree in finance, Roening hopes to find a career in sports, hopefully coaching a softball team in Washington or Oregon. Coaching at her former college for a year, before attending graduate school is also a possibility. Roening said she knows she wants to attend graduate school in either sports administration or nursing. She is sure though that sports are in her future.

Playing her last home game at Mizzou will be a hard and bittersweet moment Roening said.

"I've had a great time. It's hard thinking about all our times as teammates on that field. I'll leave everything on that field; I have no regrets."

No one knows where Janessa Roening's future will take her, however, with her strong work ethic she is likely to find success in whatever she pursues. -Written by Jen Gauthier