Photo courtesy of Mekhia Freeman

Georgia Southern University softball outfielder, junior finance major Mekhia Freeman, No. 6,  is always looking forward to game days. Freeman’s main focus throughout game days is to keep her energy at an all time high. By keeping her game days busy, Freeman stays alert and focus, making her ready for the game.

“Game day, to me, is honestly the best day,” Freeman said. “It’s where all our hard work pays off and where we are actually able to have fun, ‘cause we know we put so many hours in the week.”

Freeman wakes up earlier than usual on game days, and the first thing on her mind is music to get her ready to start the morning. Throughout the day, Freeman likes to dress down and be more comfortable, but all while having her GS Softball gear on. She also makes sure to eat a good breakfast by fueling up with a strawberry sprinkle doughnut. A small game day ritual Freeman started was going to Sonic and getting the blue Nerds slush.

She spends her day going to class and hanging out with her teammates, and if she does have some spare time, Freeman trains by taking extra swings, watching other softball games or binge-watching the Netflix show “Good Girls.” Staying busy is very important for Freeman, meaning there is no afternoon nap.

“If I take a nap on game day, I’ll wake up tired. I like to stay up and just be alert and see everything,” Freeman said.

Listening to music really helps her get through the day and keep a upbeat vibe while remaining focused for the game. Music is a major key for Freeman on game days. On the way to class and as soon as class ends, she puts on her AirPods and loves to switch between hip-hop and country. Freeman gets a lot of her energy from listening to music.

“I usually listen to Lil Baby, he really gets me going,” Freeman said.

While the whole team warms up before the game, Freeman said, “We listen to music on our small speaker. We usually go to Pandora and go to 2000s hip-hop and just shuffle it.”