Shatel: Nebraska's Jordy Bahl has 'new appreciation' for softball, vows to 'come back hungrier' (2024)

LINCOLN — A Jordy Bahl update: In late June, she sweats.

On June 26, Nebraska’s superstar softball pitcher walked into a Hawks Center media room in workout gear, taking a break from the road to recovery.

Bahl’s celebrated first season for the Huskers took a sharp, cruel detour Feb. 8. In the third inning of the season opener in Mexico, Bahl tore the ACL in her left knee while planting after a pitch.

The 2024 season then became a grind of rehab but also, in her mind, the blessing of a reset season, a chance to catch her breath after a stellar career at Oklahoma.

NU would sustain other injuries and fight to finish 30-23, just missing the NCAA tournament. Bahl saw the year with a heavy dose of philosophy and renewed passion for the sport she loves.

After several requests to speak to the Papillion-La Vista grad, Bahl met with media Wednesday and told her story.

For starters: She’s “feeling good” and is in the “strength-building” stage of rehab. She’s at “50%” for pushing off the knee now but expects to be 100% in October.

Q: What do you remember about the injury? Was the mound or surface faulty?

A: “I landed just like I land every single time. The groundskeeper felt horrible, he was apologizing the next day. I was like, no, I didn’t slip or anything. There was nothing wrong with the rubber. It was just one of those freak things.

“It felt like a big “pop.” It scared me more than it hurt.”

Bahl was able to put some weight on it and “didn’t think there was anything wrong” until examinations back home said otherwise.

“At first I was angry,” Bahl said. “Then literally two seconds later, it was ‘Okay, I’m redshirting. What’s next?’

“Also, I felt a sense of relief because…just everything mentally the last two years leading up to that. Pressure, expectations, coming home. There was so much craziness.

“I never at one point was able to step back and take a deep breath, (say), here you go, you need this rest. This is the only way you’re going to get it. I look at it as a reset, renewed my love for the game, renewed my appreciation for everything.

“It’s been a really big year for that reason.”

At the same time, Bahl said, taking a year off was hard. It’s not how the champion and competitor is wired.

“It’s really hard to explain if you’re not in the shoes,” Bahl said. “From freshman year, even before college, everything you go through, you’re physically and mentally exhausted.

“You want to take a break but then you start to think about all the bad things that could happen, oh everybody is going to start catching up to you, this and that.

“But when you don’t have a choice, it kind of simplifies things. I’m going to be on the sidelines. Don’t waste it. Use it for something and come back hungrier.”

As some of her teammates began getting injured, Bahl said the team went through the same thought process that she did: anger then a philosophical approach to make it an opportunity to get better.

“I was really looking forward to playing with some of the girls,” Bahl said. “They still had a good season. That’s just college athletics. You can’t go back in and change things. What’s done is done. Those are the cards you’re dealt.”

Q: Have you ever been part of a season that ended (with no postseason)?

A: “Yes and it just makes you sick to your stomach. And you say I’m going to make it in my power to make sure that never happens again. Or, you’re okay with it, and if you’re okay with it, that’s kind of weird.

“That’s why we have girls here now working out, and a bunch of transfers coming in that are hungry, they want to win. I think my coming back will just add to us having that identity next season.”

Q: Do you feel like you still had an impact on the team culture even though you didn’t play?

A: “I hope so. In talking with all the transfers that are coming in, the common theme is they want to win and they want to do whatever it takes to win. What more can you ask? A lot of what you do on the field is physical, but just that mindset is much more important than the physical piece sometimes.”

Q: Why did you wear a uniform all season?

A: “All the girls at Oklahoma did. We had people redshirting and you always put the uniform on. The reason behind that is you play college softball for four years, there’s going to be a day when you don’t put that uniform on again. It’s like, put the uniform on, be with the team, be around everybody. I think it helps a lot.”

Q: How did it feel watching your former teammates win another national championship?

A: “I was very excited for them. I think it would have been weird if those seniors had gone out any other way. It was a storybook ending for them. They put their time in. I was glad to see that happen.”

Last summer, Bahl said one of the reasons she transferred home was to have an impact on softball in the state, and beyond playing for Nebraska. She said she got a start on that.

“One of the cool things was I’ve gotten to relate and connect with a lot of girls who are going through injuries,” Bahl said. “You hear that kids today are getting these injuries younger and younger.

“Being able to use my experiences to connect with these girls has been cool because, especially in softball, there’s a lot of lows. You have to learn how to deal with those.

“A lot of young girls watch the College World Series and see the best of the best — that’s the high point of every college athlete’s career. What they don’t see are all of the struggles and hard times that come along with that. Using one of these low times to connect with others over low times, that’s been one of the coolest parts.”

Another one of the coolest parts that she won’t forget: she still got the goosebumps.

“It would take a really big game in a packed stadium to feel the goosebumps,” Bahl said. “But by the end of the season, I would feel that hearing the music, just walking out, with warm-ups getting started.

“That’s been great. You still love it, you love what you do. I just got a new appreciation for it when I came back.”