CLEVELAND – When the going gets tough, there is only one person we all trust to confide in. For some, it's a relative, close friend, neighbor, teacher or coach. For the Delta State softball team, that role is filled by Katelyn Westbrook. She knows her job is to lead others by example, both on and off the field, so she tries to help others make the best of every situation.

"It is so easy to be negative and be hated, but I hope that just showing them with a positive attitude and hard work that they are going to get more out of it in the long run than they are right now," Westbrook said.

Of course, it helps that she doesn't take herself too seriously. If there was one word to describe the girl who seems to have a word for every situation, it would have to be goofy.

"I say goofy because I try to make light of every situation," she said. "I can be serious, but I think it's better to be around people who are funny."

Westbrook is from Southaven, Miss., and started playing softball competitively in sixth grade. She attended DeSoto Central High School in Southaven, where she played basketball, volleyball and softball. She was named to the Chickasaw All-Conference First Team and Second Team as an outfielder and received All-Conference Honorable Mention as a second baseman. Off the field, Westbrook was selected to the 2012 Hall of Fame, received the leadership award and was a member of the National Honor Society.

She ultimately decided to pursue her collegiate career in softball because she felt it was a way she could bond with her father. "My dad is a big part of my life, and he enjoyed watching me play softball," she said. "It was kind of a bonding thing, and I figured it was something more we could have together. I would be closer to home and doing something that I enjoyed and that he enjoyed."

But coming from Southaven to a small rural town in the Delta wasn't that big of an adjustment.

"Northwest broke me in," she said. After high school, Westbrook began her collegiate softball career at Northwest Mississippi Community College located in Senatobia, a town of about 8,000 people and nearly six times smaller than that of Southaven.

"But I do like this atmosphere better," Westbrook said. "I never thought I could see myself living in a small town later on in my life, and I feel like coming here made me appreciate the atmosphere a lot more."

At Northwest, Westbrook had a stellar two-year career. She was a 2014 First Team All-North Division selection and guided the Rangers to a 29-14 record and state playoff appearance. She broke the single-season (27) and career (29) stolen base records, which she still owns today and is the accolade she is most proud of.

"I had to get on base in order to steal, and I'm not a very good hitter, so I had to really work hard at that," she said. "I didn't realize how quick I was or how good of a read I got."

In 76 career games with 51 starts, Westbrook hit .333 with five doubles, 11 RBIs, 46 runs and 29 stolen bases. She had a .464 on-base percentage and fielded .985 in 67 career chances. However, she was faced with a complex many athletes have to come to terms with—the fact her career may stop short because she had nowhere else to go.

"I didn't have any offers leaving Northwest. Kaitlin Moore was still here [at Delta State], and Kory Watterson was coming here."  Westbrook grew up playing softball with Moore and Watterson, and she thought it would be amazing to finish her collegiate career alongside them, considering neither of them imagined they would ever play on the same team again after high school.  

"I used to catch K-Mo when I was younger," Westbrook said. "It was funny. She was a terrible pitcher." Her eyes get that familiar glint again—the Katelyn Westbrook look. The one where she tries to be serious, but you can tell she is really not, so she tosses her head back and tries to stifle a laugh. Like she said, she can be goofy, and she has what she describes as a goofy relationship with Moore, so Westbrook admits she doesn't have to be too serious.

But Westbrook is also a hard worker. She puts 110 percent effort into everything she does, and it doesn't go unnoticed. In fact, her work ethic was one quality that stood out alongside her athletic prowess.             

As the story goes, she needed to transfer to another school, if she wanted to continue to play softball, and Moore was the main reason Westbrook chose Delta State. Moore had talked with assistant softball coach David Martinez about the possibility of Westbrook coming to Delta State while Westbrook was finishing her career at Northwest. Even though Martinez told Moore he had already heard of Westbrook, he started to pay some more attention to her skills after talking with Moore.

"And it just kind of worked out," Westbrook said. "I walked on here and then received a scholarship this year."

During her first year with the Lady Statesmen, Westbrook batted .211 in 24 games with an on-base percentage of .400 and a slugging percentage of .211. This season, Westbrook has helped guide the Lady Statesmen to a 33-12 record, the first NFCA Top 25 ranking in school history and third place in the Gulf South Conference. She is currently batting .250 with seven hits, two RBIs, 10 runs scored, with an on-base percentage of .375. Despite the success the Lady Statesmen have had this season, the highlight for Westbrook has been being able to finish out her senior year with two of her best friends.

"It's just cool," she said. "I've got to live with them, too, so it's like having a sleepover with your best friends every night."

Since Senior Day is right around the corner, it is starting to hit home that this season will be the last time she will get to be on the same field with them, which is something she will miss just as much as not being able to play softball anymore.

"We've literally played ball since we were 10, with an exception of two years," Westbrook said. "We made a lot of memories. It has been a lot of fun."

Staying true to her leadership role, Westbrook also leads off the field in other campus organizations. She is a member of Kappa Delta Sorority and the HPER club, and she was voted 2016 senior class favorite. While she has accomplished a lot, it makes everything worthwhile that she has been able to share the experience of going to college with her younger sister who is a freshman at Delta State. 

"It's cool because she appreciates me a lot, and I appreciate her way more than she appreciates me," she says with a laugh. "It's just convenient that we have each other when things get tough."

Westbrook will graduate in December 2016 with a Bachelor's degree in exercise science. Then she plans to attend radiology school, hopefully in the Memphis area.