Realizing her dreams

By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications

When Christine Campbell was in the third grade, she drew a picture of herself wearing a UCLA uniform.

This weekend, a dream of playing in UCLA's Easton Stadium will be realized for the San Diego native.

"Christine was probably a little disappointed when UCLA never recruited her, even in the slightest way," said Lehigh head coach Fran Troyan. "I think for her to get a chance to pitch on UCLA's field will be a dream of a little girl come true, in a different, but maybe even better way."

It's fitting that it was Campbell who helped will the Mountain Hawks to a Patriot League Championship and a Friday night matchup vs. the Bruins in Los Angeles (11:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2).

Lehigh entered Sunday needing two wins over Boston University to clinch the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Fourteen innings later, the Mountain Hawks wrapped up two one-run victories (1-0 and 4-3), all 14 innings pitched by the senior Campbell, to clinch the program's 14th Patriot League Championship.

"After we won the first game, my eyes were on the prize," said Campbell. "We all knew we could do it. I wanted the ball in my hands. My teammates were so supportive. It really didn't feel like 14 innings at all; it felt like I was in the second inning of the first game, over and over again."

Campbell did run into trouble in the first inning of game two. After pitching a two-hit shutout in game one, the Terriers quickly took a 2-0 lead, but Campbell and the Mountain Hawks regained control, not letting the game slip away.

"I was way more nervous on a personal level for that second game than the first," she said. "But after the second inning, Vicky (Lattanzio) came up to me and said to have fun out there and be in the moment. After that, we stuck together as a team and there was such a positive vibe in the dugout. We were cheering and having fun."

In that moment, Campbell's teammates picked her up and helped her refocus. In many other cases, Campbell has done the same for her teammates. The 2017 Mountain Hawks are truly a team.

"Christine and her senior classmates have helped create a culture that we're in this together, as a whole team," said Troyan. "We knew we could fall behind a few runs at any point and it wouldn't be a big deal because we've fought back all year. She just needed to refocus, reenergize and throw her game. She knew the team would do everything in its power to come back, and it did. Her teammates held up their end of the bargain, and she held up hers."
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Sunday's performance was just the latest of a long string of success for Campbell while at Lehigh. On the field, she is a three-time All-Patriot League honoree and was the league's Pitcher of the Year this season.

Campbell's impact goes beyond on-field statistics. She has taken part in the Lehigh Athletics Leadership Academy, including Emerging Leaders and Leadership Legacies, which has helped in her, and the team's, growth.

"We have group meetings with our team leaders. The meetings really helped us this year because we were struggling a lot at the beginning of the season," said Campbell. "Having those designated hour-long meetings to really figure out what we could do and how we could bring this team together, really helped us bond and build a strong culture."

When the team was 7-14, a positive leader like Campbell helped keep the Mountain Hawks together.

"Christine is a person who every player on the team is comfortable talking to, about any sort of situation," said Troyan. "Over the course of a season, things inevitably come up. If they're swept under the rug or left to fester, they usually don't work out very well. She is so approachable all the time.

"Christine is also a leader by example," Troyan continued. "When people see a strong senior leader, they want to emulate her actions. She helped set the tone for the season in making sure the team was unified, everybody was moving in the same direction and any issues were dealt with in a very constructive way."

The Mountain Hawks went on to catch fire, going 16-2 in the league to earn yet another regular season title. That set the stage for Campbell and her moment to shine, a moment that was two years in the making.

Flash back to 2015 when Campbell was a first team All-League honoree, but didn't pitch in the Patriot League Tournament.

"Christine pitched a bunch, but by the end of the regular season, Emily Bausher was at a different level and we decided to pitch her in every Patriot League Tournament game," said Troyan. "After the tournament, Christine talked to me and said coach, I want to be that person one day (in the pitching circle for a championship). I'm going to work hard to do that."

With 14 gutsy innings on Sunday, Campbell did just that.

"The last thing I said to Christine when we left the field Sunday was that you got your wish because you worked hard at it," said Troyan. "We put her out there because we had the confidence in her, she performed at a high level and was incredibly focused."

Making Sunday's performance more impressive was the magnitude of every pitch. Each pitch was high stress. At any point, the momentum of the game could change on a dime, but Campbell was completely in control, a confidence that spread to her teammates.

"Every pitch was a pitch that mattered," said Troyan. "For her to perform over such an extended period of time was really incredible. She had an incredible will to win, which really demonstrated itself and manifested itself in the outcome."

Campbell is focused on a big upcoming stretch, which will feature pitching in the NCAA Tournament less than 150 miles from home, and end with graduation ceremonies at Lehigh on Monday. Even after her collegiate career comes to an end, her softball career will continue.
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"A week or two after I graduate, I will travel Europe to play for the Irish National Team because I'm a dual citizen for Ireland," she said. "I'm going to play with them in the European Cup in Italy this summer."

Campbell doesn't know anyone on the team.

"There are two others from America on the team, one who plays for Furman and one who plays for Georgetown," she said. "I'm really excited to meet everyone.

"After I play for the Irish national team for about three weeks, I will go to Holland and play for a club team there," Campbell continued. "That's where I'll be living for most of the summer."

After the summer, Campbell will return to the United States where she hopes to secure a position as a graduate assistant softball coach.

"As an assistant coach, I want to develop a better understanding of more of the logistical side of the game, too," she said.

Campbell's ultimate goal, and dream job, is to become a general manager of a Major League Baseball team. There's no surprise she's reaching for the stars. Campbell is a competitive person and that competitiveness was on display during her internship with TD Ameritrade Institutional two summers ago.

"They would give me an excel sheet to work on and I would literally time myself to do it as fast as I could, and then double check it," she said. "It definitely taught me that competitiveness does flow over into the workplace."

Campbell's competiveness and never-say-die attitude is what allowed her to be successful on Sunday for Lehigh softball, and will give her a chance to reach her dream as an MLB general manager.

"My dad always says the sky's the limit," said Campbell. "Don't let anyone tell you differently."

Campbell is proof that if you work hard enough, anything is possible, and dreams can be reached. One of her dreams, playing on UCLA's field, will be realized this Friday on national television in the NCAA Tournament.

"I'm so glad my career is ending this way, with a Patriot League Championship," she said. "I couldn't have written it any better."

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Completed Event: Softball versus Lafayette on May 3, 2026 , Win , 8, to, 1

Completed Event: Softball versus Lafayette on May 2, 2026 , Loss , 4, to, 5

Completed Event: Softball versus Lafayette on May 2, 2026 , Loss , 9, to, 12

Completed Event: Softball at Villanova on April 28, 2026 , Win , 5, to, 0

Completed Event: Softball versus Hofstra on April 26, 2026 , Win , 7, to, 1

Completed Event: Softball versus Georgetown on April 26, 2026 , Win , 8, to, 6

Completed Event: Softball at Rutgers on April 24, 2026 , Loss , 3, to, 8

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