DOBSON — Signing an NCAA National Letter of Intent was just a formality at this point for Surry Central senior Emma Bullin.
She’s known for a long time that Pfeiffer University is where she wants to be, and she’s known for an even longer time that she would do whatever was needed to keep softball in her life as long as possible.
She sealed her commitment to both of those worlds by signing with the Pfeiffer Falcons on Thursday.
“I just want to thank my coaches, my family and all my teammates I’ve played with for as long as I can remember,” Emma said. “They supported me and were always there for me.”
Emma has gone up and down the road competing at every level of softball imaginable in any stadium or open field she could find. This started with recreational softball at the age of 5 and later travel ball at age 9.
Emma’s father, Travis Bullin, is a founder and coach for the Surry Smack travel softball team. Emma played for the Smack eight consecutive years as well as numerous other leagues.
Travis said his daughter has played on between two and four softball teams each year since Smack was founded in 2013.
“Emma developed a love for softball at an early age and soon set her goal of playing in college,” Travis said. “She has always been determined to be the best player she could be, constantly honing her skills, and has worked an untold amount of hours outside of practice to do so.”
Deciding to play college softball at an early age isn’t an exaggeration either.
“Oh, I’ve known for a while, ever since I started playing rec ball really, that I want to play in college,” Emma said. “That’s always been a dream.”
Another of Emma’s longtime coaches is Joel Jones. Coach Jones had the luxury of watched Emma mature as both a player and a person as her former middle school coach, assistant varsity coach and now head varsity coach.
“I could see early on that she was going to do whatever it took to succeed,” Jones said. “She’s a very coachable kid and good athlete. She’s always on time and shows up to give 100$ at practice. She’s done well for herself. She’s worked on it on her own time to get to where she’s at.”
Recruiting really started for Emma when she started playing in tournaments all along the coast.
She said scouts would come up to Travis after games and ask who she was, to which he proudly replied, “That one’s my daughter.”
Emma realized playing college softball wasn’t just a dream anymore when she competed – and thrived – in these tournaments.
Travis said she led her multi-state travel league in pitching stats in tournaments from 2015-2018. In 2019, the team shifted to mostly college showcase formats.
Emma also attended softball camps at various universities throughout high school. No matter where she went, Emma always knew Pfeiffer was where she was meant to be.
“When I started to go to these camps as a freshman, I knew immediately that I wanted to go there (Pfeiffer),” she said. “The coaches are great, the players always so nice when I’m…it just feels like home.”
Pfeiffer checked both boxes for the future college student-athlete by also having her desired field of study: Special education.
“She has volunteered in the Special Needs class at Surry Central for the past two years during her free period and quickly decided that she loved working with these students and wanted to make this her career,” Travis said.
Emma also plans to minor in athletic coaching with the goal of one day being a softball coach herself.
For now, Emma is focused on training for the upcoming softball season this spring. Last spring, the Golden Eagles were only able to complete two games before COVID-19 shut the season down.
“That was pretty sad, honestly, because we were going to be really good,” Emma said. “We only played two games, both of which were freezing, and we won both.”
2020 wasn’t completely devoid of softball though, as Emma was able to play travel softball for the Smack.
In 176.2 innings pitched, Emma started on the mound 47 times and recorded 26 wins, 11 losses and a save. Bullin struck out 130 batters and had a 1.217 ERA.
At the plate, Emma recorded 53 hits and was walked 15 times in 108 at-bats. She hit 14 doubles, three triples and one home run.
Emma finished the 2020 season with a .491 batting average, a .540 on-base percentage and a .704 slugging percentage.
As fulfilling as travel season was, Emma admitted she’s really looking forward to representing the black and gold this spring. Jones also expects a lot from her as one of seven seniors.
“I’m looking forward to her being a team leader,” Jones said. “To be one of the ones to step up and show the young girls how to practice and be a training tool for them.”
Travis Bullin extended thanks to Emma’s coaches and all those that helped her throughout her softball journey.
“We are very thankful to Coach Monte Sherrill, at Pfeiffer, for allowing her the opportunity and are excited to see her dream of playing softball in college become a reality. We would like to express a sincere thanks to the Coaches and trainers that have helped her along this journey: Jimmy McHone and Justin Quesenberry of Surry Smack, Joel Jones at Surry Central High School, Dwayne and Kim Puyear of Blue Ridge Hitting Center and Megan Conner – her pitching coach.
“Emma, we are proud of you and look forward to seeing you on the field at Pfeiffer University,” Travis Bullin said.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
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