Focus on mental health at Wichita State helps spur breakout season for softball star

Apr. 4—When the doubt starts to creep in, like she doesn't belong, CC Wong will head to Wilkins Stadium.

She stands by herself in the vacant field, with the only noise being the Kansas wind whipping through. For about 10 minutes, she "grounds" herself by trying to soak in the scene.

She fixates on the Shocker softball scoreboard beyond left field and studies the championships commemorated on the fence. She appreciates how green the grass is and reaches down to feel the infield dirt.

"Sometimes I don't think I deserve to be here," Wong said. "It feels surreal that I'm here in this amazing place and I'm surrounded by amazing people with the opportunity to play at this level. So being able to look out and be like, 'I'm really here, I'm really doing this,' that's really helped me."

After struggling in her first year at the Division I level, Wong has become the latest in the line of softball transfers to Wichita State who have thrived in the team culture created by coach Kristi Bredbenner.

Wong, a transfer from Grand Canyon, has proven unequivocally that she does belong at this level during WSU's 17-12 start to the season, which continues on Friday with a weekend series against Tulsa at Wilkins Stadium. She ranks top-10 nationally with her .495 batting average (second), .575 on-base percentage (seventh) and .958 slugging percentage (sixth).

For a WSU comparison, Wong is reaching base nearly as often as All-American Sydney McKinney once did, while providing power numbers (11 home runs, 32 RBIs) similar to All-American Addie Barnard. After a three-homer game last month, Wong was even tabbed the NFCA National Player of the Week and she was recently ranked as the No. 1 second baseman in the country by Softball America.

"CC is a great example of how (a first choice) isn't always a great fit," Bredbenner said. "Everybody fits into different programs in different ways. We've had a lot of success in the transfer portal with kids coming here and rejuvenating their careers. I don't think it's because we know way more about softball than everybody else, it's because we create a community where you can be yourself and you have the resources to be the best version of yourself."

CC Wong becomes rare softball star from Canada

Growing up in Port Coquitlam, a suburb of Vancouver in the British Columbia province of Canada, CC Wong didn't have many hometown softball heroes to look up to.

Not many Canadian softball players make it to the Division I level in the United States.

But Wong was fortunate to grow up in a fast-pitch-loving family, which included Jenn Salling, a first cousin who was an All-America infielder for the University of Washington and won a national championship in 2009.

"I always looked up to her because she played on team Canada and won all of these awards and a national title," Wong said. "I've always wanted to follow in her footsteps."

Wong was on that path when she left Canada to attend McLennan Community College in Texas to begin her collegiate career. In her sophomore year, she led the nation with a .580 batting average, ranked third with 91 RBIs and fourth with 27 home runs and was voted the 2022 NJCAA Division I Co-Player of the Year.

She was ecstatic to field Division I offers, just like her cousin, and ultimately picked Grand Canyon, an up-and-coming program coming off an NCAA Regional appearance.

"A lot of Canadians take the (junior-college) route, but then can't find a way out," Wong said. "So when I made it out, I felt this pressure to prove myself so bad. It wasn't the right kind of pressure. It was a selfish kind of pressure."

Wong never found her confidence at Grand Canyon and struggled with her mental health, as she finished with a .290 batting average, no home runs and just seven RBIs in 69 at-bats last season.

Following the season, Wong said she felt like she was at a crossroads in her life. Did she really want to continue her softball dream?

"I got in this mental rut and I didn't really understand how to get out of it," Wong said. "And that's not GCU's fault at all. I just wasn't in the right mindset. So when I went into the transfer portal, I knew I needed to find a school that really cared about mental health. I think it's something that every athlete needs and, unfortunately, they don't always get at certain places."

Before WSU entered the picture, coach Kristi Bredbenner and her staff needed to do their due diligence.

How Wichita State found CC Wong in the transfer portal

When Wong first became a target for the Shockers in the transfer portal, Bredbenner knew before she could proceed in the recruiting process she needed to understand the why behind the dip in stats at Grand Canyon.

WSU associate head coach Elizabeth Economon reached out to McLennan coach Chris Berry, then Bredbenner had a long phone conversation with Salling, who is now an assistant coach at UCF.

"Coach B has a tough style, but she's a very family-oriented person and I think that balance of a coach would be really good for (Wong)," Salling said. "She needed to be loved up, but she also needed to be held accountable. And that's why I thought Wichita State would be the perfect fit for her."

Salling's recommendation carried weight, but Bredbenner always likes to see how a recruit handles themselves when they come to WSU's campus for an official visit.

"When we bring a kid on a recruiting visit, it can be make-or-break if we're going to make an offer," Bredbenner said. "There are kids who come and about two hours in, I'm like, 'I don't know about this.' Whether it's arrogance or being super quiet or they don't seem super interested.

"CC was interested, she was excited, she was just a spark plug. We knew then that she was going to be a good fit for us."

When Wong arrived at WSU, she immediately began working with Mallie Hall, a mental health and performance counselor who was hired last year by WSU athletic director Kevin Saal.

Hall is the one who suggested the "grounding" exercises for Wong, who gives partial credit to her improved mental health for her breakout season with the Shockers.

"I can sometimes feel myself falling back in the same pattern, but the coaches and Ms. Mallie have been there for me to say, 'You're OK,'" Wong said. "I'm not perfect, so going to a sport psychologist has been so helpful. Ms. Mallie has been there with me every step of the way and she has helped me so much."

Why coach Kristi Bredbenner's culture at WSU works

Bredbenner and her staff have become something close to specialists in picking the right players out of the transfer portal.

Sydney McKinney (Missouri), Zoe Jones (Texas Tech), Ryleigh Buck (UCF), Lauren Howell (Arkansas) and Bailey Lange (Northern Iowa) have all helped build WSU into a consistent postseason threat after beginning their collegiate careers at other programs.

Many of those transfers have spoken about how they were looking for a place where they could rediscover their passion for the game after feeling burned out at their prior stop.

Bredbenner has turned WSU into a welcoming place for those looking to rejuvenate their careers.

"What makes (Bredbenner) different is that she lets us come in and just be ourselves," Wong said. "We have fun in the locker room. If you come to our practices, they're full of energy and we have the music going — and it's a lot of fun.

"I struggled in one game and 'Coach B' came up to me after the game and said, 'It's because you weren't smiling.' And she was right, I was putting too much pressure on myself. So now every time I step up in the box, I look over and she's always smiling at me. And I know I'm OK."

The joy of seeing a player find their love for the game again never grows old to the coach.

"That's what it's all about at the end of the day," Bredbenner said. "When kids are having fun and they're having success, that's what we live for. To see them love the game again, that to me, is the ultimate gift I can give a kid in their experience here."

Wong's bubbly personality has been infectious in the locker room and on the field. It also helps that she has 15 multi-hit games and is almost always on base as WSU's leadoff hitter.

"CC brings so much energy and passion to the game that our team really needed," said Addie Barnard, who bats behind Wong in the order. "Her coming in and finding that love again is huge for us because she deserves this. I know she talked about not really enjoying softball last year, so to bring that passion back into the game has helped her and has helped our team so much because she is a huge part of our success."

Not only has the success this season restored Wong's love for the game, it's revived her passion to follow in her cousin's footsteps and try to represent her country some day on the national team.

Wong played on some youth national teams before college, but the numbers she is producing at WSU could make her a candidate for the senior national team.

"With softball back in the Olympics, I know she has goals of being a part of our national team," Salling said. "If she stays on this course, she's got a good chance to someday become an Olympian. I'm just so proud of her because I know how hard it's been for her on this journey."

Some days, when Wong is standing out by herself at Wilkins Stadium, she takes the time to reflect on that journey.

Where she's come from, where she's been and where she's going ... she smiles because she's finally realized she does deserve this.

"I think back to my younger self and I don't think I could have ever imagined being in a place like this," Wong said. "I'm living my dream right now and making it reality. It makes me want to keep working, keep grinding and keep putting in the work because I know I'm not done."

This story was originally published April 4, 2024, 6:02 AM.

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