Ashley Heiberger Schmid '08-'10

Ashley attended Iowa Lakes Community College from 2008-2010, she will be going into the Hall of Fame for Women's Softball.  Ashley's decision on attending Iowa Lakes Community College came after visiting campus and meeting Coach Bosch.  Coach Bosch left a lasting impression that convinced her Iowa Lakes was where she needed to be in order to reach her goals.  For her, it was a unique choice as many of her friends chose private institutions.  She considers her choice to attend Iowa Lakes to be one of the best decisions she has ever made.

During her time at Iowa Lakes, Ashley amassed some impressive stats including the following from her sophomore year: .389 batting average with a .444 on base percentage.  She also contributed 89 hits, 83 runs, 12 homeruns, and 101 RBIs on the season.  She was Region XI Runner Up in 2009 and 2010, placed third at Nationals in 2010, was fourth in stolen bases, 15th in homerun leaders, and first in RBIs for the NJCAA.  She was named to the ICCAC All-Region first team both years, was selected to the NFCA/NJCAA first team, named All-American in 2010, and was named JNCAA Diamond Catcher of the Year.

Coach Mike Bosch had this to say about Ashley, “Ashley had an aggressive grit that enabled her to reach her maximum potential as an athlete. One always asks your catcher to lead the defense and Ashley did exactly that and more (at times maybe a little TOO MUCH exuberantly). Very rarely does one find catchers that can hit for power and run, but Ashley could do both. Competitive, vocal, and a leader…traits that made her successful as an athlete still serve her well in motherhood today.”

After Iowa Lakes, Ashley went on to play for Quinnipiac (Quinn a pea ack) University.  While there she was named the Northeast Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and received the NEC’s Golden Glove Award.  Ashley also led the conference in hit by pitch with 22, which was 11 more than the runner up.  This may have contributed to her being named Iron Woman as well!

Ashley works as a legal assistant and part time as a cosmetologist.

When asked whom she would like to thank, Ashley had some moving words about her family, “My father who taught me everything and is still my number one coach to this day. He spent hours and hours with me and never complained once. I remember being that weird kid who liked to practice after practice or practice on my off days. In the summertime I would ride my bike miles to the nearest softball field, with my cleats over the handlebars. I would get there early to run and stretch, and my dad would meet me there with the bucket of balls. I’d gear up and he would throw balls in the dirt at me and we would work on blocking, along with many other things. But that is just a little sliver of the dedication and compassion I gained from watching and learning from my dad. My mother who provided me support when I had my good games but also my bad games. She always said the right things. When I lived in Connecticut, my mom would always mail the best treats for Christy and me!  I learned to never give up from my mother. I mean, she had six kids. I have one and go crazy at times. She is my role model. My parents never missed a game, either watching it online or being there physically. I was very fortunate that my family could be so involved. They were always cheering for me. My coaches for being my family away from family. And definitely Christy, for being there for me during many “firsts” in life as well as being my best friend to this day. I couldn’t have gotten through college without her. We were roommates all through college and now live only blocks from each other.  Also thank my husband now because he has to put up with my competitiveness for life.

And of her times at Iowa Lakes Ashley reflected, “You can’t sum two years up in a short speech, but attending Iowa Lakes was two of the best years of my life.”

Congratulations Ashley Heiberger Schmid on being inducted into the Iowa Lakes Hall of Fame.