Heather Cameron, who is a catcher of the UH Mānoa softball team, provides a great example of time management and leadership. Being a catcher, she said, trained her to become responsible of the team, as she had to maintain control of the game.

She added, “Framing the ball is the art on its own.”

In addition to being in the advantageous position of catcher, her extroverted nature made it easy for her to lead the whole team.

She has been practicing on being a catcher from the age of 7 since her dad and her dad’s friend were both softball coaches. Her interest in softball continued during her high school years when she helped lead her varsity team to two league championships in 2013 and 2014. She graduated in the year of 2015, receiving Principal’s Honor Roll for her excellent academic results, as well as her softball skills.

Even at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, where she is majoring in marine biology for her interest in wildlife management, conservation, and animal training, her passion toward softball did not wither and she joined UH Mānoa softball team. Due to the experience as a student-athlete at her high school, she was able to adapt well to the tough training schedule. The training season for softball is on February and March at the base camp. She described the training schedule as “hectic,” as she had a hard time keeping a good GPA and keeping track of the harsh practice, and she sometimes had to procrastinate her work.

However, she insisted that when her team eventually wins the tournament after many harsh practices, she will feel proud of herself. For example, when she scored her first grand slam ever in her life during the competition against UC Davis and won the game, she was ecstatic.

She said, “Many student-athletes had to procrastinate doing their homework because of really tough and tiring practices.”

Despite the time-consuming practices every day, she was able to consolidate her future job. She is looking forward to training animals, especially her favorite animal, the shark, before searching for a marine biology job anywhere in the world. Furthermore, playing softball helped her make lifelong friends, including a friend who is attending UH as a student-athlete with her from the high school life.

Aside from studying and practicing softball, she advised many student-athletes to be aware of their work, and not be too obsessed with sports.

She advised future student-athletes, “It’s ok to lean on your support system. My mom was a good crutch for me. And most importantly, do not procrastinate. Time management is very important, so take care of yourself. Do not mess up your school work and sleep patterns.”