RANKINGS
EVENTS
I COMMITTED
COLLEGE
ABOUT
Rylee Rehbein is a talented senior pitcher from Battle Ground, Wash., who helped lead her Battle Ground High team to a 3rd place finish in the Washington 4A State Championships in Spokane in May of this year
The team had a final record of 17-3 and, per Head Coach Jeremy Barr:
“Rylee had a phenomenal year, scoring multiple home runs and extra base hits… (She) came up clutch on both sides of the ball for sure.”
In an article with The Reflector, a local newspaper, Coach Barr continued:
“Rehbein is ‘ultra-intense,’ and competes with a fiery passion in everything that she does,” the high school coach added. “When she steps in the circle, she’s all business… and is an amazing worker with this great spirit about her.”
The 2023 grad has also shined on the club level and is currently with the Washington Ladyhawks 18U team and was one of four signees last month for the Montana Grizzlies program led by Head Coach Melanie Meuchel.
In the signing release, the Griz coach said:
“She has come to Missoula (Montana, where the school is located) for a couple camps and we’ve been able to watch her along the recruiting trail. She is knowledgeable about pitching, competitive and spins the ball really well. We continue to see her growth and her ability to spin pitches by people.”
In this exclusive Inside Pitch for Extra Inning Softball, Rylee shares her recruiting experience and why she’s a strong believer in “fit.”
In her own words, here is also why the athlete believes that she found the perfect fit with the Big Sky Conference program which is about a nine-hour drive from her home in the Apple State…
*****
The recruiting process that takes place within travel softball is far from easy but it was an experience that helped me learn so much more about myself.
It also forced me to take my future into my own hands and to hold myself accountable for making the right decisions to attain my goals. I am eternally thankful for the opportunities I’ve been given through this challenging yet incredibly rewarding process.
I first started emailing college coaches and researching different schools and programs that I would potentially be interested in during my freshman year. It was at this point when I first started looking into the University of Montana, along with many other schools.
After careful examination of the school, its programs, campus life, and the town itself, Montana quickly became a dream school for me. I’ve always known that I wanted to study Journalism and Broadcasting in college and pursue something within the Sports Broadcasting world as a career.
As a result, it was easier for me to narrow down my list of potential colleges and really focus on what schools were going to have the best academic programs. After a lot of research, I found that the University of Montana has one of the top 10 journalism programs in America (supportum.org)!
The University of Montana, at first, was a college of interest for me simply because of the fact that I have most of my extended family there. I spent a lot of time visiting the Missoula area growing up, so it already felt like another home to me.
I love the “college town” atmosphere and the fact that the sports programs at Montana have a significant amount of community support. The more research I did on the academic options, and the more I corresponded with the coaches at Montana, the more it seemed to be a perfect fit for me.
One of the most important things for me when looking for a team, especially a college team, was to have a very close-knit and family feel; and Montana could not have fit that mold better.
In fact, their motto is F.A.M.I.L.Y (Fundamentals, Accountability, Montana Tough, Intelligence, Loyalty, and YOLO) and these core values resonated with me—I love what they represent!
One thing that really stood out to me was the way that the coaches care for the players, and I believe they truly capture the feeling of “family” within the team based on how they treat the players.
It is very apparent within the way that they communicate and work with the players that they truly see the players as their family and that was something that I was extremely interested in because I really want to be a part of a team that shares these values.
For example, I really loved all of the resources that the coaches were able to provide for the girls and how they were able to make Montana their home-away-from-home.
Another thing that was really important to me was how much time they invested in me from the start of the recruiting process. It was incredible to see that as soon as I reached out to Coach Mel and Coach Alison, they truly took the time to watch me and get to know who I was as a player and person for over three years.
When we finally went through the recruiting process and they offered me a position on the team, there was no doubt in my mind that I wouldn’t find another coach that would be that committed to me and devote that much time into the process to have the confidence to choose me as one of the very few recruits, especially for my position.
With that, I was able to commit with confidence!
One of the most common goals among young athletes is a large NCAA Division I school or bust. While going through my process, I learned that a huge D1 school isn’t necessarily the best fit for me.
It wasn’t until I actually traveled to these schools and did more research on them that I realized this: you can play for a big school with a big name but potentially not have the same plans as the coaches or same values as the program does.
Also, large schools with tens of thousands of students seem so impersonal. The size, area, coaches, program, university, and overall vibe of the University of Montana was exactly what I was looking for and I could not be more excited about playing there and pursuing my educational goals.
Overall, I realized that the University of Montana was the perfect fit for me while I was on campus for my official visit.
I never truly believed people when they said that you could just “get a feeling” about a school during a visit, until I actually stepped on the campus. I had the opportunity to spend time with the team and coaches and I visited the numerous academic facilities.
I knew it was the place for me when it felt like I was already a part of the Montana family. I was able to make an immediate connection with every player and coach and it seemed that their goals and values fit my own. Along with the fact that the academic programs were amazing, it was also that the coaches were one hundred percent all in, committed to me and wanted me to come to the team exactly as I am and help me grow through my strengths and challenge me without changing who I am as a player and person.
Again, one of the most important things for me was being able to be around family, and again, Montana was perfect for this because my parents aren’t too far away. I also have a lot of my family just an hour away and I could not be more excited to be close to all of them.
I feel so fortunate to have found my perfect fit and I can’t wait to begin my educational journey at the University of Montana!
I am extremely blessed and excited to announce my commitment to further my academic and athletic career at the University of Montana. Thank you to all of my coaches, trainers, teammates, and most importantly my parents for all of their support! #gogriz 🐻 pic.twitter.com/YTuCowPf7m
— Rylee Rehbein 2023 (@RehbeinRylee) September 14, 2022
Lastly, I have been lucky enough to have played for and worked with many amazing coaches and would like to thank each and every one of them for helping me throughout my journey. A few that have played a major role are: Anna Nickel, Mike Muhlheisen, Mariah Dawson, Scott Ackerman, and Frances Camp for making all of this possible, teaching me so much, and helping me grow into the person and player I am today.
Most importantly they taught me how to love softball, how to have fun with it, how to compete, and be the best version of myself on and off the field.
— Rylee Rebein