Playing hockey in the winter and fastball in the summer, plus mixing in school as a grade 9 student keeps Callie Franklin on the move, but the 15-year-old star wouldn't change a thing as she's loving every minute of it.
Franklin says she took to both hockey and fastball around the age of five, but she can recall in detail what happened the first time she put on skates. "I remember the exact day," she says with a smirk. "I saw my sister on the ice and she was just ripping around. I stepped on and I fell because I had these skates on for the very first time, I looked at my mom and said 'why aren't mine not working?' I wanted to be just like my sister, that's why I got into hockey and ball, because I wanted to be just like her."
Switching from hockey to fastball can be tough, but Franklin has a very good handle on things when it comes to preparing for each sport through years of growing up doing both. "It was really just perfect," she says with a big, proud smile. "It was the perfect set up. As soon as the hockey season would end, I'd get right into ball, which I love just as much. I never really have time off in a year, but that's how I like it, I like being busy."
It's not just playing two sports but it's being at a high level for both sports that Franklin has really come to embrace through hard work and dedication. "I owe a lot to my coaches," she says when talking about her development as an athlete. "My biggest developing coach was actually my dad, he coached me from a very young age up until two years ago. For ball, it was my auntie that coached me all through the years. She and my dad played huge roles in my careers. I wasn't on board all the time being related to my coaches but it turned into such an advantage as I got older. We could get into more detail about my game and that was huge for me."
As ball season is in full swing, Franklin says it's been a little different this year but she's taking everything in stride. "Playing as a major is quite different from playing as a minor, it's been a really great year. We actually just finished a tournament recently and in that tournament, I pitched about 17 innings. I play second base and pitch, and it's been so great, the girls are super nice. The team gets along really well, it's just been awesome."
While there's still many hot days left ahead, Franklin admits her mind does drift to when hockey season will be coming back around and the Westman Wildcats will have a new coach this year, something Franklin is excited about. "Hockey is always on my mind. I'm super excited for this upcoming year, Karissa has been such an amazing coach to me. I absolutely love her."
Having teammates that are also duel-sport athletes or even just friends on the hockey or ball team has always been something Franklin has cherished. "All of my closest friends are the friends I've made through sports. They're the reason my sports career has been so fun and memorable. Nothing would ever have happened without them by my side."
Balancing school life while also playing sports has come with challenges, but Franklin finds ways to grind through that side of things, as well. "It's tiring, it's like when I come home, I have a solid nap before I go to wherever I'm going. It can be hard to juggle everything but with our road trips and everything, I can get a lot done in the car. It's alright, grade 9 isn't super lots of homework, so it's been good."
Looking into the future, Franklin says she has a dream and is going to do her best to achieve it. "I have thought about it and my biggest hope is to go to the University of Regina and play on the Cougars there. That's the dream."
If Callie Franklin has proven anything, it's if she want's something, she will do whatever it takes and work however hard she needs to to make it a reality. If that's the case, the U of R may want to set aside her number already for a few years down the road.