Barnhill is back in the game as she signs with Ole Miss
By Robert Morgan | Published Thursday, July 30, 2009
A month after demanding and receiving her release from the University of Texas, softball standout Brittany Barnhill has landed a new gig. The pitcher took an official visit to the University of Mississippi over the weekend and sealed the deal before returning home Monday.
Barnhill made it clear that she expected to play this year but could not talk with any other schools until the July 1 open period where recruits can talk with coaches. She will be suiting up this fall as she has two years of eligiblity left after two successfull seasons with the Longhorns.
"Anytime you can add a player of Brittany's caliber to your team, it can only make your program better," Ole Miss coach Missy Dickerson said. "I am looking forward to the dimension that she will add to our team with the proven successes she's had both in the circle and at the plate."
The 2007 Northwest High School graduate, who will not lose a year of eligibility because she got a full release and did not transfer within the same conference, was already familar with the Ole Miss softball program as the Rebels were one of her top five picks her senior year. She had more than 200 college offers in her final year at Northwest before deciding to stay close to home and play at UT.
After two years in Austin, Barnhill finally decided to make the move that she wanted to make a year ago.
"I realized that Texas seemed a little too big for me, and there were a lot of things going on both on and off the field that contributed to my decision," said Barnhill. "I believe that college is supposed to be a fun and educating experience, and if you are not enjoying it in one place, then you should go somewhere you will. College is supposed to be some of the best years of your life.
"I will miss my teammates and the academic support staff. My teammates are the heart of Texas softball, and if it was not for them, I might have done this sooner. The academic staff was absolutley amazing, and they helped me so much throughout my two years. Balancing softball and academics is a full-time job, and it would have been hard without them."
The move to Mississippi will be a reunion of sorts for the Wise County standout. She will join Erinn Jayjohn, who pitched for Northwest this year, on a pitching staff that is loaded with North Texas talent. Becky Nye, who played at McKinney North, lost to Barnhill and Northwest four years ago when the Lady Texans made their run to state. Also, current Northwest catcher Natalie Nimmo has verbally committed to play at Ole Miss after graduation next summer.
"Ole Miss has more of a college town feel and is a whole lot smaller then Texas. I, myself, am a small town girl, so it's definitely a good fit for me," said Barnhill, who also expressed her excitement to play with her old teammates and rivals. "Last year Ole Miss played really well - they missed regionals by only four games. I hope to help them get to regionals this year, but the SEC is one of the most competitive conferences, and I am excited to contribute any way I can."
In her two seasons with the Longhorns, Barnhill helped lead Texas to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. She led the Longhorns in the circle last season posting a team-best 26-14 record with a 2.70 ERA and team-high 170 strikeouts in 236.0 innings en route to first team All-Big 12 honors. Her 26 wins ranked second in the Big 12, and her 170 strikeouts was good for seventh in the conference.
Barnhill earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors last season after she posted a win in the circle over No. 6 Oklahoma and a .700 batting average, 10 RBIs, two doubles, a triple and a homer for the week of March 30.
As a freshman, Barnhill struck out 94 batters in 114.0 innings and was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week after she turned in her first career no-hitter over Texas A&M Corpus Christi.
A 2007 EA Sports All-American at Northwest, Barnhill was named the 2007 Texas Gatorade High School Player of the Year, set a Texas state high school record with 1,715 career strikeouts to go along with her 0.06 ERA and was named the 2007 Texas Class 5A Player of the Year.
Barnhill is a liberal arts major with a minor in history and English. Upon graduation, she plans to be a teacher and coach high school softball.
