Bruning Determined To Make Senior Season Her Best

March 16, 2012

By: John Holt, Ole Miss Athletics Media Relations Graduate Assistant

While setting goals can be characterized as a form of art, there are generally two scenarios when setting goals.

Drift away from a desired goal, and obstacles are certain to enter and cause havoc. Act on a goal and the reward almost always results being the same: success at its finest.

For Ole Miss senior pitcher Kendall Bruning setting goals and the process of accomplishing them are key elements in determining how her final collegiate season plays out.

Thirty is the number of games the Rebels are striving to win this season, and 20 is the number of games first-year head coach, Windy Thees is expecting Bruning to win for the team.

"I told (Kendall) she's got to win 20 (games) for us," Thees said. "Her job is to win at least 20 games for us and we're going to figure out how to win 10 more. That's how we're going to get to 30. So she knows what her expectations are."

Bruning began playing softball at the age of six in a recreation league. Her mother, Kim, was the one who introduced Kendall to the sport.

"My mom really pushed me," Bruning said.

Growing up on a farm in Chickamauga, Ga., Bruning produced a high school career that included numerous accolades. All four years while attending Ridgeland High School, she was named to the Walker/Catoosa County Dream Team. She also was named to the Chattanooga Times Free Press first-team All Area her final three years.

Following high school, Bruning decided to start her collegiate journey at Chattanooga State Community College. Bruning dominated the junior college ranks, leading Chattanooga State to the 2010 NJCAA Women's College World Series, while also pounding 21 home runs, which was the best among all junior college players that season.

"Chattanooga State was definitely a learning experience," Bruning said. "I got so much better between my freshman year and sophomore year. It was a lot of work. We got a lot of games in. But we played a lot of big schools. We played Tennessee, Alabama, South Carolina and Auburn. We were always playing good teams and good competition. It taught me a lot about the game."

Bruning departed Chattanooga State after her sophomore season, and said she immediately fell in love with Ole Miss and its campus. Yet the transition from playing in the junior college level to the Southeastern Conference was larger than Bruning anticipated.

"It was a big-time adjustment," she said. "I throw the ball hard, but I realized that you can't just throw it by somebody in this league. You actually have to spin it. You have to hit your spots. You have to take care of the ball, not just throw it up there."

Although it was her first season participating in softball at the D-1 level, Bruning played in 37 games and earned 26 starts for the Rebels in 2011. She led the team with 131 strikeouts and produced five complete games along the way.

So far this season, Bruning paced Ole Miss in the circle with an 11-2 record and a 2.30 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 85.1 innings pitched. She ranks third in the SEC in innings pitched, fourth in wins, 10th in K's and 15th in ERA. She has also pitched 10 complete games on the season.

"With any team you have, you want really good senior leadership," Thees said. "I feel like the competitiveness that Kendall brings to the equation is just awesome. She's so competitive. She hates to be bad at anything, and she won't be."

Bruning is not only a strong pitcher, but has also proven she's an effective hitter. This season she already has two home runs.

"We're trying to change the culture of the program here," Thees said. "We really want our most competitive players on the field if at all possible, all the time. Kendall's one of those. She's one of our top-five competitive players and she's good. She's a great hitter, and one of our best. She's a great pitcher, and she is our best. So if we can get her on the field, we're going to put her out there."

Bruning, who lists the outdoors as one of her main hobbies away from softball, said Thees has been instrumental in her success so far this season.

"Just seeing the difference between last year and this year, and what these coaches have done is amazing," Bruning said. "I tell the freshman and sophomores every day, `Y'all are so lucky you get to have four years with this coaching staff.' I like the old coaches don't get me wrong, but I'd give anything to go back and have four years under the new staff."

Thees is a firm believer in displaying positivity on and away from the field. Bruning believes her coach's positive mindset she brings to the sport is one of the biggest reasons she doesn't hesitate to admit that this season has been the most enjoyable of her softball career.

"Coach (Thees) is all about going after what you want, and to not be satisfied with anything," Bruning said. "She always stresses that no matter what kind of outing you have, you're still good."

When Ole Miss' season concludes in May, Bruning will finally have time to sit back and reflect. Her collegiate career will be complete. She is scheduled to graduate in December with a degree in psychology and plans to be the Rebels volunteer coach for the 2012-13 season.

"I think senior's always go one of two ways," Thees said. "They either want to have the best year of their career and just put all of their heart and soul and effort into it, or they start planning for their future after college. One thing Kendall committed to real early in the fall was making this her best season of softball ever. She really wanted to make a name for herself, and she really wanted to show everybody what she could do, because she was really disappointed in last year. I think just that heart and commitment to excellence for her senior year early on this fall, showed in her conditioning and showed in everything she did. I think that's why she's going to have a great year this year."

For Bruning, she hopes a `great year' will translate into 20 wins beside her name.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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