by Mia Laube
Most athletes see the end of their sports career once high school graduation hits. A select few get the opportunity to continue the game they love into college. Miranda Kramer has turned softball into a lifestyle.
The former pitcher from Burlington who played at Indiana University-Purdue in Fort Wayne and Western Kentucky University is now a collegiate pitching coach.
“I just wrapped up three years of coaching at Syracuse University where I started my coaching career,” Kramer said. “I am currently getting ready to pack up my life and move down to Arlington, Texas, where I was lucky enough to be offered a job as their new pitching coach at University of Texas at Arlington.”
Kramer was an All-State pitcher for the last three years of high school, and in college, she was a first team All-American. For her, sports are an opportunity to give back to the younger generation.
“My inspiration for being successful in this sport has always been little girls,” Kramer said. “I always looked up to older athletes when I was younger, and I wanted to be that same athlete for other little girls when the time came.”
The little girls of Burlington have had quite a role model to look up to. Kramer helped her team to two state tournament appearances, making the all-tournament team both times. Those who followed her success into college know that she ended her career with 1,204 strikeouts, which ranked 39th in NCAA history at the time. In 2015, she led the nation in strikeouts and hits allowed per seven innings.
Kramer is very deserving of her spot in the 2019 IGHSAU Softball Hall of Fame.
“All of the hard work, pitching workouts [and having] no nights off were all worth it once you realize you are going to be amongst the best of the best in the Hall of Fame. I am so grateful to even be considered, let alone for it to actually be happening,” she said.
Kramer feels special to be a female athlete from the state of Iowa, and she plans to spend her life helping other girls reach their full potential just as her coaches did for her.
“My main goal in my life is to be a woman coach that empowers young athletes and helps shape their future,” Kramer said. “I plan on finding ways to do this through coaching and other avenues given to me.”