Inspire Her: Sharon Perkins
2/2/2022 8:00:00 AM | Softball
To honor National Girls & Women in Sports Day, we will be sitting down with some of our standout female coaches and players to highlight their efforts and achievements.
Head softball coach Sharon Perkins has quite an impressive resume, winning 3 ACC Coach of the Year titles, as well as leading Georgia Tech to 6 consecutive winning seasons. This will be her first year at Georgia Southern, and hopes are high for the program as many students and faculty members have February 11 circled in their calendars, when the Eagles take on Binghamton University in their home opener.
"I'm trying to make some changes," says Perkins, when asked what she hopes to achieve in her first year in Statesboro.
I've had the pleasure of sitting down with Coach Perkins to discuss her career and what significance the holiday holds to her.
"Having spent 18 years coaching at the college level, what do you prefer most about college athletics?"
Softball-wise, while there is a pro league, it's much more of a managing role. In college, you're actually coaching the players. I love the practice setting, I love training and preparing for games. I enjoy the preparation phase and gradually seeing them be successful. When they're working on one thing, and eventually they get it, it's rewarding. Games are fun, too. I love to win, and hate to lose.
"What does the average game day look like for you?"
Usually, we'll watch some video of the opposing pitcher, and just remember what our plan is at the plate. That type of thing. We'll typically watch a highlight from another game to get everybody pumped up. It's being focused and working on our game plan during warmup time, playing clean defensively, and making sure the pitchers are prepared. There are different way to win games, you just have to figure it out. It's not always going to be easy, and you have to continue making adjustments on pitchers and not get frustrated. There is a lot on the mental side of it.
"How does that differ from practices, meetings, any other day of the week?"
I guess it's more real now. You prepare through the week for certain things, and you try to make it as real as possible. We do a lot of pressure situation drills; like when we're doing defense, we'll have runners on bases and make it real timing-wise. They have the pressure of having to get that kid out instead of just going through the motions. If you don't field it quickly and set your feet and throw, you're not going to be able to do it when the game is on the line. We try to do those things in practice so that it's not their first time when the game is there.
"Coach, as I'm sure you're aware, National Girls & Women in Sports Day is coming up in just a couple of weeks. Who would you say is someone that inspires you as a woman in sports?"
Lu Harris-Champer. She coached at [the University of] Georgia. I worked for her for 10 years, she got me started in coaching. She had the approach that it was okay to be female and to go about things the same way that the guys do. It was okay to be excited, to get aggressive, just like the guys.
"What do you use from your time with her to make an impact on your players on a daily basis?"
I coach & handle myself with a lot of energy, I try to have fun every day. The more fun the better. They know there are serious times for some things, but sometimes if they mess up, I'll tease and kid around with them, I'm pretty sarcastic. I'm sure sometimes they don't appreciate my sarcasm though. It's not for everybody.
"For any young women that may be considering positions like yours, what advice would you have for them?"
Number 1, just follow your dreams. Take advantage of every situation, and never put yourself in a box and say "Oh, I'm just a female, I can only do ___". It's okay to branch out. There are more and more businesses giving women opportunities, so take advantage of the small things and don't pigeonhole yourself.
