Havelock's Tillman headed to Florida for college softball

Havelock’s Ellen Tillman has always liked the beach. So when it came time to decide where she would like to play softball in college, coastal Florida had a nice feel to it.

Tillman, Havelock’s senior third baseman, signed to play at Indian River State College in Fort Pierce, Fla., during a ceremony Thursday at Havelock High.

“The area is nice and the school is nice,” she said. “It’s a coastal community right on the beach. I love the beach, so I figured Florida is the place for me.”

Tillman said Indian River coach Dale Atkinson attended an Orlando, Fla., tournament in which she played as part of a travel team, and the recruiting process began.

“He watched two of my games, and I guess he liked what he saw,” said Tillman. “We set up a visit, and after that, I just loved the college.”

Tillman also considered an offer from Lees-McRae, but she came away impressed with Atkinson and the Indian River softball program.

“I saw a game, and I just loved the way he coached,” Tillman said. “I really liked the feel I got from him, and the girls were really nice there, so I felt really comfortable there.”

Tillman made her college choice just days before her senior season officially starts with Havelock’s first practice on Monday.

“It’s off my shoulders, and now I’m just excited to start my high school season, knowing that I have something as good as Indian River to look forward to once I graduate,” she said.

Tillman hit .444 last season for a Havelock team that went 18-6 and reached the second round of the playoffs. She led the Rams in home runs (four), triples (four) and RBIs (27).

“Her competitiveness, her drive, her resilience, her determination, her love of the game, her love of life, her oozing enthusiasm – you see that through her and you get excited when you see it on the diamond,” Havelock coach Anna Spear said. “I’m glad we have her for another year.”

Tillman will enter her senior season as one of Havelock’s top returning power hitters.

“I always go up to the plate really relaxed,” she said. “I get in my own zone and get focused in on the pitcher and watching her hand. I just relax and try not to get too tense. I used to get really tense in the box, but now it’s just a place I like to go to relax.”

Tillman, who said her long-range goals are to become a physical education teacher and coach softball, said she enjoys everything about the sport.

“I just love being on the field,” she said. “I love playing, the speed of the game, and the adrenaline rush it gives me.”

But she also likes the bond she shares with teammates.

“Just being on really close teams, such as Havelock and the Carolina Gators, we’re really close, and that always makes it a lot of fun,” she said. “Coach Spear always talks about being really close, being one group and always being tight, that’s one thing that has really stuck with me.”

She said that cohesiveness was on display last season when the Rams battled perennial power South Central in a 16-inning contest in which Tillman was struck by a pitch in the first inning and played the entire contest with a displaced knuckle.

“We all came together as a team,” she said. “Our defense was solid and our pitching was really great. That’s probably my favorite game.”

Indian River went 50-10-1 last season and fell in the Atlantic District championship game to Miami Dade, missing a spot in the National Junior College Athletic Association national championship tournament by one game. The Pioneers have won five Florida regional championships and finished in the top five of the NJCAA national championship tournament five times in the last 10 years, including winning the national championship in 2002.

“I’m really excited about the program,” Tillman said. “It’s a really good fit for me. I’m just ready to start my next chapter there.”