Four years ago, Mindy Nguyen made the choice to attend Doane College to participate in indoor track and softball. She was one of the best all-around athletes at Fremont High School and had the opportunity to do two sports in college.
Growing up, Mindy's first experience with athletics did not come on the field or track but on the mats as a gymnast. This is where she first found the thirst for competition.
"I started off doing gymnastics, thinking one day I would make it to the Olympics," she recalled. "Eventually I got involved in basketball and track. I was really big on track and when my senior year came around I was offered a scholarship to Doane for track and softball."
During the fall of her freshman year, she came to the realization that she had an opportunity to excel in softball. She elected to focus on one sport and was the starting left fielder for the Tigers in her first year.
Mindy made a wise choice, earning First Team all-conference honors in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC). She set a school record, 55 stolen bases in just 58 attempts. Not only did she attain the single-season record for Doane, she set the career record in just one season.
Nguyen couldn't recall any one specifically that helped teach her the art of stealing a base. She says that there is a technique involved but instinct also plays a role in how good a runner can be on the bases.
"It all starts with a good jump. If you can't read the pitcher well and get the good start, it will be close. You also need to get a read on the catcher."
With her efforts during her first season, she helped Doane earn their first-ever regional tournament appearance. Nguyen batted .411 with 51 runs scored, both team-high marks.
Mindy says she did not expect to be a base-stealer at Doane.
"When I first came to Doane, Coach (Barry) Mosley really wanted me to work on becoming a left-handed slapper," Nguyen remembers. "After I started stealing one base after another it just became a goal of mine to get the record at Doane. Once I broke that record, my next goal was to get the NAIA record."
She ran out of games, falling 13 shy of the NAIA record.
Her sophomore year proved to be a little more difficult. Opponents made adjustments defensively and Mindy saw her average dip to .296 for the season. With the dip in average, her stolen base numbers dropped as well. She finished with 19 steals in 21 attempts.
Going into her junior year, Mindy started to develop an itch for track and field once again. After a rough fall camp in softball, she decided give the indoor track season a shot, specifically the long jump.
Missing two years of track can make it very difficult to come back at a competitive level. Mindy, though, had the raw natural athleticism that allowed her to not only be competitive but at a high enough level to place 10th in the GPAC Indoor Championships.
Nguyen had to make adjustments, not only returning to the track, but also to new coaches, coaching styles and teammates.
"Jumping for new coaches who have different workouts is always a big adjustment for athletes, along with working with new teammates and the philosophy of the track team," commented Dave Ziola, Doane horizontal jumps coach.
The confidence gained during the indoor season led Mindy to make the decision to turn her focus to outdoor track instead of softball.
She added the triple jump and javelin to her repertoire of events during the outdoor track season. Mindy continued to improve each week and by the time the conference championship meet came around, she had qualified to participate in each of the three events.
At the championship meet in Sioux City, Nguyen earned All-GPAC honors in the javelin (Sixth Place) and long jump (Eighth Place). Athletes placing in the Top Eight of an event earn all-conference honors and Mindy just missed out in the triple jump, placing tenth.
The competitor that she is, Mindy had to make choice as there was still a spot in her heart for softball. She could do indoor track and then join the softball team or she could do one or the other.
"I knew I wanted to do both because it's my senior year and I wanted to make a statement for myself," Nguyen said. "I wanted to leave Doane knowing that I could get an education as well as play softball and track in the same season."
So, not only did she do indoor track where she earned all-conference honors in the GPAC, she followed it up by doing outdoor track while also competing in softball.
Some days are tougher than others, Nguyen says. She has found that doing two practices in one day can be very draining on the body but it has been worth it for her.
Mindy works around the softball schedule. On days that the softball team is not competing, she participates at a track meet if there is one.
She has also found the swagger she had during her freshman year, both at the plate and on the base paths.
In the second game at Peru State College on April 17, Mindy reached 100 career stolen bases as she swiped five bases in five attempts in the doubleheader.
A week earlier, Nguyen hit a provisional NAIA Championship mark in the javelin with a throw of 127-11.
Entering postseason softball play, Nguyen leads the team in stolen bases (30) and is second in batting average (.398).
Her successes in both sports have both squads in position to compete for conference championships this week. The softball conference tournament starts on April 29 and the track and field championship will be held on May 2.