By Emma Bynes
Maddie Tse comes up to the plate at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School. As a senior, she is one of the core members of the baseball team in upstate New York. During her at-bat, Tse gets some weird and confused looks from opposing players and spectators — who do not know of her character and determination. Tse hears a few comments from the crowd. She pays no mind to them and continues her at-bat, looking to discover any tells the opposing pitcher may have about speed. Tse plays year round for her high school team as well as Baseball For All, an all-girls baseball organization. For many girls playing baseball, their career stops the summer after high school due to a lack of professional women’s baseball teams or inexperience with college softball. Not ready to give up on the game just yet, Tse has chosen to continue her journey on the diamond as a softball player at Springfield College.
During her recruiting process, she considered continuing her baseball career at Division III schools, including at Springfield College, partly because of Tse’s interest in Springfield’s highly regarded athletic training program.
“I knew I wanted to go somewhere that allowed me to focus on academics while continuing my athletic career. Springfield College gave me the opportunity to do both,” said Tse. “I initially was interested in Springfield because of the well known athletic training program and rigorous academics. Athletically, I was drawn towards Springfield because of the facilities — including the varsity weight room and athletic training room.”
When the new opportunity arose to play softball at Springfield, Tse jumped at it. Kate Bowen, Springfield’s former head coach, who has since stepped down to take a position with Southern Connecticut State University, had given Tse a chance. Losing the coach that recruited her so early into her collegiate career, Tse knew she was going to have to persist through yet another form of change. However, it turned out that there would still be a bit of continuity.
Graduate Assistant Sam Garcia took over as the team’s acting head coach for the 2025 season, and all it took for Garcia was a quick look at Tse’s raw ability and skill to see she wouldn’t have a problem performing on the smaller diamond.
“What makes Maddie so unique is that she just wants to go and play,” said Garcia. “If she wants something, she’s gonna go and get it. You can’t teach that.”
Though most new students and athletes would be hesitant to make such a big jump — Tse has been the exception.
“Maddie has been all in, trying to adjust her gameplay from baseball into softball, which is really commendable,” said Garcia.
Despite dealing with a hip injury that delayed her start to the season, Tse’s determination and hard work to switch across sports hasn’t just been visible to her coaches, but Tse’s teammates as well. First-year pitcher and Tse’s floormate, Julia Rimschnick, sees Tse’s drive on and off the field.
“She’s a very hard worker who cares a lot about her academics. I think she balances softball plus school is very impressive. She perfectly demonstrates what a student-athlete is,” Rimschnick said.
An additional facet of being a woman in baseball is that Tse has gotten to travel to unique places to play. Last year, Tse made history, when she represented the United States at the first ever PONY (Protect Our Nation's Youth) girls’ baseball World Series in Japan, and said it was her favorite trip.
“I was on the U23 team and we played teams from Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, and Australia,” Tse said. “It was inspiring to see women from all over the world play baseball. It also led to new friendships with my teammates and foreign players.”
Tse passionately patrols the outfield, and is supported by other upperclassmen who play beyond the dirt. Graduate student Michaela Ponticello, who had an on-base percentage of nearly .400 last season, has helped to make the change for her teammate as simple as possible.
“She’s faced some challenges such as getting used to the size difference in the field, swinging a lighter bat, and throwing a bigger ball. She continues to get better every day and adjust. The transition isn’t easy for anyone, but she gets more comfortable day in and day out,” Ponticello said.
The core aspects of baseball and softball are the same, with hitting, fielding, defense and running still remaining, but there can be challenges in the niche differences between the two that Tse has had to deal with.
“I had to adjust to different rules like no leaving the base before the pitch is thrown or different bat regulations,” Tse said. “These changes in game play also led to mechanical adjustments in my swing and throwing.”
Tse also worked hard practicing with softballs instead of baseballs over the summer.
One of the incidental benefits of playing softball instead of baseball is the smaller field and shorter basepaths.
“Maddie is so quick, even in practice she covers so much ground because compared to the outfield she used to have to cover — a softball field is a small portion of that,” Garcia said. “She has a great first step of getting to the ball and she wants to go get it. She doesn’t have to worry about beating a ball 90 feet [the standard base path length on a baseball field]. Now it’s 60 feet, which probably seems like a cake-walk for her.”
For years, she ignored the naysayers who told her ‘girls don't play baseball’. -Justine Seigal
She has participated in multiple clinics with MLB develops, and plays for “Baseball for All” in the summertime — a women’s baseball organization founded by Justine Siegal — an alumna of Springfield College. Siegal, who was the first woman to throw Major League Baseball batting practice, has a unique relationship with Maddie, writing her college recommendation.
“Maddie is the first girl to play baseball at her high school. For years, she ignored the naysayers who told her ‘girls don't play baseball’. She worked hard, stayed determined and proved them all wrong,” Siegal said. “I have so much respect for Maddie, not just as a player, but for the person she is. She is kind, leads with integrity and is always looking out for her community.”
One of the key ambassadors to the WPBL, Siegal knows it’s possible to make the jump from the two sports.
“Softball and baseball are two different sports, with skills that can transfer between the two games. Some of the differences Maddie will have to get used to, as she plays softball, is underhand pitching vs the downhill plane of overhand pitching, Siegal said. “In softball the ball is bigger, the field is smaller, and the bats are longer and lighter. While there are differences between the games, both are competitive bat and ball sports.”
When with MLB develops, Tse said her that coaches show “girls that they can do whatever they want to do -– whether it’s playing baseball or softball or [both],” Tse said. “And if you want to change careers, go ahead.”
Tse is also looking to continue pursuing her passion for girls’ baseball, even if not on the field at this moment in time.
“Like most kids, I dreamed of playing professionally,” Tse said “That wasn’t a realistic goal until now.”
Luckily for Tse, the Women’s Pro Baseball League (WPBL) is hosting its inaugural season in 2026 — and Tse hopes to play.
“I think the amount of exposure women’s baseball is receiving is amazing and long overdue,” Tse said. “When I was growing up, the only female baseball player I knew of was Mo’ne Davis in the LLWS. Now, the amount of girls, little league to college, receiving media attention is insane. I frequently have this conversation with my mom where it’s like wow. I get to be a part of this movement and make history.”