Abbey Mixon Performing On and Off the Field

To Kennesaw State junior Abbey Mixon the this year has been anything but expected.

“It’s been crazy,” Mixon said. “First off, us being the No. 2 seed was not expected at the beginning of the year. It was really cool. We knew coming out here that we had a target on our back and obviously it showed when we lost to Stetson in the first game. We were glad to come out tonight and get to play them again and send them home.”

The pitcher has had an exceptional tournament so far after picking up the win against Stetson to send the Owls into tomorrow’s conference final. Mixon picked up seven strikeouts in the contest as well.

However for Mixon, performing on the field is just as important as performing off the field.

This past summer Mixon embarked on a trip to the Dominican Republic with her then-fiancé, now husband Brad. Mixon had never been on a mission trip before – and she was terrified. Her first morning there she got sick and was ready to head back to the United States.

However, her feelings changed not long after that. Once the upset stomach had passed she was able to really dig deep and focus on why she was there.

“It was such a life-changing experience. I’m so glad I went,”

While in the Dominican Republic, she assisted with vacation bible school classes and church sessions. She also helped rebuild a home for a local pastor whose home was flooded.

“It’s cool to see Christ throughout the world. You think he’s just here, but he’s not, he’s everywhere.”

She enjoyed being able to see how people in other countries lived and loved the new perspective it offered.

Mixon’s husband is currently studying ministry and the pair aren’t sure what the next step is after graduation but they know they will figure it out when the time comes.

Mixon says wherever they do go she hopes to be able to utilize the teachings of her early childhood education classes at KSU to help change children’s lives.

After her rough start on day one in the Dominican Republic she never thought that experience would impact her life as much as it did. It certainly puts into perspective the Owls’ loss to Stetson in their first game in the tournament. Just as Mixon didn’t let the bad day spoil her trip the Owls made sure to not let a tough loss ruin their chances of bringing home Kennesaw State’s first conference championship.