The Instagram message included all the makings of something shady.
Out of the blue, a stranger was offering Shea Smith the chance to continue playing softball in Switzerland with all expenses covered and pay to boot. Shea Smith
Upon investigation, it proved to be legitimate and just what she needed and beyond what she could imagine. Smith left Monday night for Zurich, where she will be one of two Americans playing for the Barracudas for the next three months.
"There's not another time that I'll be able to do something like this," said Smith, who graduated from GCU with her twin teammate, Sierra, in April. "I feel like I wasn't ready to be done with softball because I just have so much fun playing. I can't imagine not being involved in it at all."
Shea ended her GCU career in May as the program's all-time Division I-era leader in batting average (.367), hits (260), on-base percentage (.431), runs (171) and walks (76). She ranked second in the WAC last season with a .396 batting average to earn a spot on the All-WAC first team. That was enough to draw the attention of Barracudas player/coach Corina Grass, who will keep Shea at shortstop.
Shea will hit the diamond running with her pro debut coming Thursday night in Zurich, where she will live with a host family for her first European stay. It is much like the experience former GCU teammate Mariah Valencia enjoyed last year with a Swedish team.
The difference for Shea will be the separation from Sierra, who joined GCU Athletics Communications as a graduate assistant this month. The Waddell, Arizona, twins alternated leading the Lopes in batting average for the past four seasons, when the program went 135-85 with them.
"It's going to be so weird," Shea said. "It's time for us to kind of grow up and do our own things. It'll be cool to experience doing something by myself. It's going to be weird to not have her to compete with, even when we're on the same team. It'll be a growing opportunity for me, being away from everyone and experiencing a lot on my own. I feel like it'll help with my independence. I'll enjoy my time there, even though I'll miss everyone here."
To read a feature and watch a video on the Smith twins, click here.
