HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL: CORNING'S SULLIVAN TAKES PART IN SIGNING DAY AS SHE WILL PLAY AT NEW HAVEN (2024-04-29)

By Brian Fees
Southern Tier Sports Report
CORNING — It was a special day recently for Corning senior Peyton Sullivan as she had her signing day to sign to play softball at New Haven.

“It’s definitely amazing,” she said. “It’s a difficult process to go through. There is a lot of emotions to go with it. It’s really easy to give up. It’s really amazing to become officially recruited and going somewhere.”

While it’s often athletics that steers athletes in their college decision, for Sullivan it was the academics that played a huge role.

“It was honestly academics,” she said. They had just opened their new health sciences building. It was state of the art, beautiful. When I first visited last October it was not finished, but when I went back this year it was finished and absolutely beautiful. But not only that, coach (Kelly) Paterson is an amazing individual, she cares more about you as a person than just an athlete.”

Sullivan plans to double major in exercise science and public health with a goal to go into PT.

PT is something that Sullivan was thinking about since an injury her freshman year.

“My freshman year I had an issue in my lower back, but I had to go through PT myself,” Sullivan said. “I was out the entire summer my freshman year, which set me back, but we worked hard and got me back to where I wanted to be. Going through it myself and knowing you have not only the opportunity to get athletes back in the game, but helping elderly be able to move, infants to be able to work through their issues, so it’s rewarding.”

Making the college decision helps Sullivan get some pressure off her.

“It’s definitely an amazing feeling,” she said. “When I was like I’m going it was like poof off my shoulders. I can sit back and relax and let me focus on my skills and get back to all of that.

“I don’t even have words for it, it’s an amazing feeling. It’s definitely, ‘holy cow, I made it.’ I made the little girl in me happy.”

The process wasn’t an easy one. Sullivan had committed to New Haven, before their coach resigned, leaving Sullivan wondering what was next.

“I’m not going to lie, when I first found out my coach resigned, it wasn’t like I’m quitting, but it was like a defeating feeling,” Sullivan said. “It’s like I thought I had it and then it just wasn’t anymore. I cried the entire way home. I cried for 2-3 days, but then I was like Peyton you want to go to the collegiate level. Get your act together and figure it out. It was emotional, but it was a good experience just to build your character.”

And, Sullivan had plenty of support behind her as she went through the process.

“My parents were supportive through the whole thing,” she said. “They knew I was upset, but they knew my end goal, my end dream. They weren’t going to let me give up even if I wanted to. They were like if you just want to go for academics that’s perfectly inexpensive, but they knew my goal was to go for athletics.”

 Sullivan knows it will take work to be ready for the college game, but she’s never been afraid of hard work.

“It’s definitely going to be hard work, which I’ve done all four years I’ve been here,” Sullivan said. “You go up and down as a pitcher, it’s never a straight line. I’m just excited to work hard and get where I want to be hopefully starting freshman year, that’s the goal.”

Sullivan has had a lot of good players in high school, and travel, who she’s played with who are also college players. She also has played against lots of talent in Section 4.

“I think we definitely have good competition here, a lot of people who play travel ball as opponents we work well against each other, this area is a good place to grow as an athlete,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan has had a lot of help with her game by working with pitching coach Quincy Lewis-Buggs and Diamond Dynamics.

“Working with Quincy was a great opportunity,” Sullivan said. “I worked with a lot of pitching coaches before, but lefties we are a different breed. My fastball has a natural movement that righties don’t have. Just working with someone who can see my side of it and not try to flip it to a right-handed pitcher, it’s definitely nice because she gets what I’m doing and she’s gone through it herself as a left-handed pitcher.”

Before college there is still this senior year to enjoy at Corning and the Hawks are state ranked right now.

“It’s really exciting to think about this season in general, we are kind of a younger team, we have returners, but also newbies,” Sullivan said. “It’s exciting to see how far we are going to go. I’m excited for a good senior year.”
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PHOTO COURTESY OF RYAN CAMPBELL/WENY TV.