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June 3, 2025 • 11 mins
Texas Softball infielder Joley Mitchell joined The Craig Way Show to preview the WCWS Finals against the Texas Tech Red Raiders. They discuss the Longhorns' run to OKC, Teagan Kavan's spectacular pitching in the WCWS, facing Nijaree Canady again, and her journey from Notre Dame to Texas.
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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Long Orange Grat student Jolie Mitchell joins is, Now, I
appreciate the time. The first thing I got to ask is,
how's it been the day having an actual day off
from competition? I know there we're press conferences and stuff
like that and work out this morning, but are you
guys able to relax a little bit?

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Yeah, just getting our minds right. I think it's always
good to have an off day, you know, physically get
to rest, but mentally it's most important. So I'm very
happy to have it so I can collect my thoughts
going into the Chance series this week.

Speaker 1 (00:28):
Okay, now what is tell folks a little bit about that?
What exactly does collecting your thoughts entail in terms of
the mental preparation for a national Championship series.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
I think the biggest thing is just flushing the bad
things that have happened and just focusing on what's right
in front of us. So, yeah, we're watching film and
we're scouting Nija Kennedy and know what we're facing. So
it's just kind of a hey, what can I do better?
And how am I going to.

Speaker 3 (00:55):
Apply that tomorrow?

Speaker 1 (00:56):
Well that's a good point and I'm interested to get
you on this because I know it was way way
back some time ago when you played Texas Tech Valentine's
Day to be exact, when you won that contest, and and.

Speaker 3 (01:13):
And they you know, it was a it was a
great game.

Speaker 1 (01:15):
I know it ended up going nine innings and Teagan
pitch very well and Cannedy pitched very very well also. Uh,
but you wound up being certainly one of the keys
in this in that two to one game. What are
the things that you that you remember about that matchup
with with Kennedy and and really and truly also Julie,

(01:35):
is she that much different a pitcher this year, at
least what you saw back in February, as opposed to
what you saw from her last year when she was
pitching for Stanford and you played up there.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
Yeah, biggest thing from that game was just I mean,
it was a dogfight. It took all night long, and
that's what happened. I think a big thing was that
we were just attacking good pitches at the end of
the game and that's what got us over the humph.
But with Nija, I think a big thing is that
she's got the same pitches. It's just a matter of
how she's mixing, if she's throwing more change ups, if
she's actually making us chase out of the zone with

(02:09):
her rise ball. But big key is just for us
to be disciplined.

Speaker 1 (02:13):
Yeah, is that one of the biggest challenges is when
someone has a change like she has to, you know,
to be able to be patient at the plate or
not chase pitches out of the zone. And can you
describe what the mental discipline encompasses, what it takes to
be able to lay off pitches like that and wait

(02:33):
for the one pitch that is the good one and
be ready to go when it does come.

Speaker 2 (02:38):
Well, I think one big thing you have to decide
is are you going to pick a speed so if
she's throwing the change enough, or you're going to sit
on it and wait on a change up, or especially
if you get into two strikes, you're gonna have to
go attack it anyway. I just think that we have
to trust ourselves. I know that we hit a lot
of pictures that have rise balls, drops and a good
change and we do find so I think a big
thing is just staying disciplined and making her work accounts.

(02:58):
Coming into the zone of the zone is going to
be tight, But we can hit those balls that are
close to it.

Speaker 1 (03:03):
Visiting with Joli Mitchell here on thirteen under the Zone, Joey,
you said something pretty interesting, or at least Holly Rowan
reporting it during the telecast mentioned about you, and I
think you did say it in a press conference afterwards
when you hit the first home run there that you
kind of had a goal in terms of a home run,
and then you said I just wanted to settle in

(03:24):
and then of course you get the next one in
the next one. So here's my question for you, is
you know, when you have that kind of goal in mind,
how challenging is it not to alter your plate discipline
and the things you do, knowing you do want to
drive one long because it really does help the team
if you can knock one out.

Speaker 2 (03:44):
Yeah for sure. I mean, yeah, my goal this year
wasn't a home run, but I know that home runs
don't necessarily win games. It's about how we can come
together as a team and chip away. Yeah, that is
very helpful that you just get to run around the
bases and you get to touch it and there's run.
But I think that a huge thing. I'm not too
concerned with that anymore. I mean, I got my personal
goal with one, two and three, But I think that

(04:07):
right now, I just want to do what I can
for the team. If that's me being on base, if
it's me pushing a runner with a bun or hitting
a sack fly, That's what I'm going to.

Speaker 3 (04:13):
Do, all right.

Speaker 1 (04:14):
So how many people have told you what you're one
away from Courtney days.

Speaker 3 (04:17):
Mark of a couple of years ago. Is if folks
mentioned that to you?

Speaker 2 (04:22):
Yes they have. Actually Courtney reached out to me the
other day. I don't know Courtney personally, but show me
how awesome it was to watch me where the burn
orange and that she really enjoys watching me play. So
that was pretty cool. I mean, she's somebody to look
up to. She's a great ballplayer, and yeah, so that
was really nice to hear from her as well.

Speaker 1 (04:36):
All right, let me get into some other things with
you that I think are really really important. One thing
I mentioned ESPN. I mentioned Holly grow and I've known
her a long time. And one thing that ESPN does
in these national events, these championship events, is they do
a really fine job I think of highlighting that the

(04:59):
career path and the personal path and all of those things,
uh that that go on, Uh for the student athletes
who were involved.

Speaker 3 (05:07):
With this, and and and to be.

Speaker 1 (05:09):
Honest, you spent quite a bit of time where they
did on on your path and the challenges that you
had to overcome, both you know, obviously with the illness
and then and then uh uh and then also uh,
you know, transferring in and making your your mind up
that this was where you wanted to be, you know,
going back through that and and coming all the way

(05:33):
from Redbud, Arkansas, playing at Notre Dame, and then the
illness and all of that sort of stuff. At what point,
even in the most difficult times, were you saying to yourself,
this is not going this is not my end story.
This is good, even though you were at certain points
fighting for your life. But I mean, was there a
point along that path where you were saying, this is

(05:55):
not my end story.

Speaker 3 (05:55):
I'm not done here yet. I've got I've got more
left in me.

Speaker 2 (05:59):
I mean, going through my illness, a lot of that
was just that was I mean, a lot was physical,
but a lot was mental too. I'd never been through
anything like that, and I struggled a lot, and so
it was hard for me to kind of emotionally be available,
and I kind of shut my parents out. I wanted
to find out who I was as a person and
be independent. And that's really tough, you know, especially going

(06:19):
through something that's so dangerous as my illness. But I
think a big thing for me was when I actually
had Tommy John in the same year that I got sick,
and so that was the big hurdle I was trying
to get over. And then I had another speed bump,
which was my illness. So once I had Tommy John
done and I started recovery from that, I actually I
saw like a little bit of a light at the
end of the tunnel. It was still hard and I

(06:41):
still was on chemo for almost two years, and I mean,
if I can do that, I can do anything. And
I love softball so much, but I think it put
it into a new perspective for me. I mean, I
love softball, and yeah, I was playing at Notre Dame.
I was getting a great education. But that's why I
was getting I was getting to do those things. I
was able to be a Notre Dame because I was
a great help all. I was able to eventually experience

(07:02):
the World Series twice with Texas, and so it's like,
if I'm really going to enjoy this, I really need
to pretend like this is actually what I want to do.
And then it turned into everything that I love and
I've never loved the game more than I do right now.

Speaker 1 (07:15):
Toward that end, I think this is a good story
that you had told apparently about why Texas. I mean,
like you said you were getting a really good education,
noted Dame Fine Institution, who were playing there? What struck
you about the University of Texas? And I heard there
was a reference to obviously what happened in twenty twenty
two and that unseated Texas team got to the finals,

(07:35):
But what really struck you about Texas as to being
where you wanted to finish your collegiate career.

Speaker 2 (07:41):
I think the biggest thing for me was that I
was finishing my why notre Dame. I was getting that
degree and I ended up graduating, and then my next
why was I want to be on the national stage
and play at the World Series. So where am I
going to do that? And we did play them the
beginning of twenty twenty two and they went zero to
five and Clearwater and I'm just like, who is this
Texas team. This is not who they are. This is
who Mike White is. And I mean, I remember watching

(08:03):
Oregon when I was growing up and coach Whye was
just a legend, and I remember seeing him on my
TV and It's like, man, it'd be really awesome to
play for somebody like that. But the fight that they had,
and they came back and put up a great fight
all year long, I mean went to Washington and then
went to Arkansas. I mean, I'm from Arkansas, so I
was watching the series very closely, and it was insane
to see them come back and win. But just knowing

(08:24):
the culture that they had then versus the culture that
we have now, there's no reason that we can't win
a national championship. We love each other and we're so tight,
and I think that we all are on the same
page as far as winning it, and we're going the
same direction. Nobody's behind and nobody's trying to get ahead
of anyone else. We're just a really great team and
we love each other so much. And so this culture

(08:44):
and the competitiveness that Coach White builds around it is
everything that I've ever asked for. And then obviously I
ended up here twice and have a chance to win
the national championship. Again.

Speaker 1 (08:53):
Got to ask you this when you were watching the
super regional there and even before that, prior to that,
after you had decided to transfer from Notre Dame, was
your home state institution interested in you? They were they
trying to get you to come to Arkansas.

Speaker 2 (09:13):
I honestly, back when I was younger, it kind of
didn't go that way, which is okay, it's fine, I
get it, but yeah, I maybe threw it out there,
but it definitely was not in my top five. Texas
was pretty much my top one, and that's really what
I wanted to focus on.

Speaker 1 (09:29):
How much, also, Jolie, was the fact that this program
has come close but has never won a national title.

Speaker 3 (09:36):
How much did that register with you?

Speaker 1 (09:38):
Wanting to be a part of the team that would
have another shot and maybe this year is the best
shot ever to win a national championship.

Speaker 2 (09:45):
I mean, you always want to be a part of it,
but you just want to contribute. I mean, I want
to be part of the reason that this team is successful,
and I want to be the reason that my teammates
wanted to be successful. I want them to know that
they have a strong leader ahead of them, and I've
got their back when I'm out there behind the pitching,
just knowing that I'm talking with the defense, I'm encouraging them,
hyping them up whatever they need. But yeah, I seriously

(10:06):
think that just being a part of it is so cool.
But I mean, my ultimate goal was to win a
national championship, so I want to be part of it
and I want to contribute to it.

Speaker 1 (10:15):
Okay, Julie, before we wrap up, I gotta know what's
what's next for you on your career path beyond is
it is it playing professionally, is it taking a degree
out into the professional world?

Speaker 3 (10:28):
You know what?

Speaker 1 (10:28):
What is it that I've also heard you described by
other people as being somebody who could really coach this
game very very well.

Speaker 3 (10:34):
What what's on the horizon for you?

Speaker 2 (10:38):
Ultimate goal is I want to work in the medical field,
So that's going to be the biggest thing that I'm
going to focus on, starting school back again in October
to pursue my career at being a nurse and Aesetus
really excited about that, But I don't want to fully
step away from the game, and I think that that's
actually grown with me even in the last few months,
I kind of wanted to say, Nope, I'm gonna hang
my cleats up and I'm going to take a break

(10:59):
from it, but no, I'm definitely not. I want to
give lessons. I want to be coaching teams. I want
to do camps. I want to inspire kids just outside
of the softball part. I want to be an inspiration
to everybody who goes through adversity, whatever you know, might
stand in their way of them being successful, because it
definitely was something that I had to deal with. But
I learned and I try to give advice when I can.

(11:19):
But yeah, I think just outside of softball, I want
to be an inspiration to others and be a mentor.

Speaker 3 (11:23):
Well.

Speaker 1 (11:24):
I appreciate you taking the time, and I don't want
to take any more time up of your off day.
I want you to get as much enjoyment and relaxation
out before you go back to the field tomorrow night.
We're looking for the broadcast and looking forward to seeing
you in the Longhorns excel and try to wrap up
that national title. Thanks so much, Joline, best of luck
tomorrow evening.

Speaker 2 (11:44):
Thank you guys,
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