Penn State commit earns Student Athlete of the Week
'I try not to think too much, I like to base it on my ability and know that I've prepared plenty of times for this and just really keep moving one pitch at a time,' said Gradishar.
She has four varsity letters for the Golden Flashes softball team and started for three seasons. Her whole freshman year was derailed by an ACL injury, but she bounced back ever since.
In both her sophomore and junior seasons, she helped Champion advance as Regional Final runners-up.
Gradishar has multiple school records, including the single-season batting average with .640 and the career runs record. This season, she has surpassed 700 career strikeouts in just three seasons.
''I'm very competitive, it's just always been in my nature, my great uncle played at Ohio State and then played for the Broncos, so I think it started from there,' said Gradishar. 'But I've really just loved trying to win everything that I play.'
Gradishar's great uncle is former Denver Broncos great Randy Gradishar. The Warren native graduated from Champion High School and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024.
Gradishar also tied the OHSAA state record for the most home runs in a single season with 23 in her junior year.
She received All-State First Team honors in her sophomore and junior seasons. She even made it on the MaxPreps All-American Second Team her junior year.
'It's not the same game every single time you play,' said Gradishar. 'It's different, it's a game of failure and if you're good at it, you can learn to get past that and keep moving forward.'
Other than softball, she was on Champion's varsity basketball team her freshman year but only played six games due to the ACL injury.
Outside of Champion, most of her time was spent playing travel softball for the Thunder Elites. But, she spent time on the Champion Student Council her freshman year and is currently a student ambassador for the Trumbull Career & Technical Center.
Gradishar has been a coach for youth softball teams, personally mentoring young softball players, and has conducted Champion youth softball camps.
'I was in their shoes once and looking up to me, I had many mentors looking up to as well. It just really makes me happy to see that they're wanting to learn and wanting to play the game,' said Gradishar.
She volunteers for TCTC school events, helps out with her church and the Red Barn Goofy Newfy Rescue which specializes in finding homes for dogs.
She will graduate Champion with a 4.0 GPA. Upon graduation, she will attend Penn State to play softball for the Nittany Lions and major in kinesiology.
'I love being a part of this team, it's really great to know that it's a legacy of softball here, and just growing up, it was always a dream of mine,' said Gradishar. 'A lot of young girls look up to us, not just me, but the whole team, and it's a really good feeling.
Gradishar is currently leading the Golden Flashes in the OHSAA Division V tournament, looking for a state title.
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