Encouraged by Coach, Murray's Playing at Quinnipiac

Alex Murray graduated in 2008 from , where she played softball, basketball and soccer for the Scarlet Hawks. During her senior softball season, she helped lead the Hawks to a 20-0 regular season finish and a league championship under head coach Brian Macchi. Murray was also named a Central Massachusetts League All-star in her final season with the Hawks.

Upon graduating, Murray took off to Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT, where she primarily focused on majoring in broadcast journalism with a sports studies minor. But with some convincing from her high school coach, Murray decided to try out for the Quinnipiac softball team and ended up walking on as a freshman. She played in 20 games for the Bobcats her freshman year, but followed that up with a great sophomore campaign batting .261, scoring 18 runs, compiling 21 hits and stealing five bases in 44 games, despite battling multiple head injuries (broken nose and concussion).

When Murray’s not studying or playing second base for the Bobcats, she’s spending her time working as a member of SAAC (Student Athlete Advisory Committee), where she helps plan ice cream socials, food drives and penny war challenges on campus and across the conference. Though Murray has held a public relations internship with the Newport Gulls in Rhode Island, she is looking to find an internship at a news station this summer where she can gain experience as a reporter and further her knowledge in her field.

Favorite food: Chicken Parmesan

Favorite movie: Almost Famous and The Breakfast Club

Favorite athletic team(s): The Boston Red Sox and Celtics

Favorite book(s): Moneyball and Harry Potter Series

What’s on your iPod right now? Mainly the band Slightly Stupid

What have you been up to since graduating from Milford High School in 2008?

I attend Quinnipiac University, which is where I wanted to go in the first place and I decided to walk on and try out for the softball team, which I made as a freshmen. I’ve been playing softball here and going to school.

How has softball gone for you over the past two seasons?

It’s been a great experience. It was kind of nerve-wracking at the beginning, but I felt that I was able to compete at the Division-I level and so that’s why I decided to try out. From my freshman year till now, I have matured a lot and learned a lot about the game and myself. I definitely improved a lot as a player.

Freshman year we didn’t have the best record and we didn’t qualify for the NEC. Then last year we actually made a pretty good improvement, finishing 15-5 in the Conference and 28-24 overall, just over .500. I had a greater role on the team, I started a lot of games at second base and was in the lineup a lot.

What made you choose Quinnipiac University and were you looking at any other colleges?

I picked Quinnipiac because I loved the campus. It was between Quinnipiac and Stonehill for me; they were two of my favorites. I wanted to be further away from home and Stonehill was kind of close to Milford and a lot smaller. I was ready to branch out and get away—but not so far if I needed to go home if I needed to or see my family. I never really go home now, so it doesn’t really matter how close I am anyways.

Could you talk about your Milford High School experience and what sports you played while there?

I played softball, basketball and soccer. I loved playing basketball my whole life and if I was five inches taller, I’d want to play that [in college], but unfortunately I’m short.

My softball season my senior year was really special, we went 20-0 in the regular season and we were league champs, and that was the first time the program won the league in a couple of years and ever since 2008 they’ve won it. My sophomore year was a lot of fun, for all programs [all sports], because that was when I finally played consistently and I just enjoyed all the coaches I worked with; they taught me a lot. Charlie Stand was my coach my whole life and then my freshman year I worked with him in soccer; he’s been around all the time. Then Brian Macchi, the current softball coach, stepped in the 2006 season when Mr. Stand started getting sick and he’s been a great coach. He was the one that convinced me and pushed me to want to try out here [Quinnipiac]; he’s the one that kind of told me I was capable of playing and everything.

Who would you say would be the most influential person or people in your life?

Coach Macchi helped me a lot sophomore through senior year and made me feel like I was able to play at the Division-I level, and of course my family and everything, but it was nice having someone else recognize my talents.

What made you decide that you wanted to major in broadcast journalism?

My parents always told me I was really good at noticing things in games when we’d be watching them together, and it just kind of came second nature to me. Coming here [Quinnipiac] I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I was always a strong writer and sports journalism is such a rising profession nowadays and it kind of piqued my interest.

Last year I worked with the Newport Gulls out of Rhode Island—a collegiate baseball league in the NECBL—as an intern and I was promoting, organizing the tickets, working with sponsors and helping run the All-star game and game-day operations. I really enjoyed that, that was a lot of fun and that made me realize I want to be involved in a sports organization, whether it’s reporting or the business aspect; something involving sports, preferably baseball.

What do you like to do in your free time when you’re not focusing on your major or playing softball?

I love going to the beach in the summer and I like being with my family—we’re all really close and we enjoy a few laughs when I’m home. I also like hanging out with my friends and reading the Twilight series. I’m really busy at school, so it’s hard for me to do things I like to do because I’m always running around.