Last Diamond Dance

It is her final hurrah.

For Fallon native Sara Parsons, today marks the beginning of the end of her softball career. Today, she and the Nevada Wolf Pack hit the diamond in a chase for the school’s first Mountain West Conference championship.

The Pack opens play at the Red Desert Classic in St. George, Utah, against BYU (11 a.m.) and Southern Utah (3 p.m.).

“I think the goals are the same ever since I’ve been here,” Parsons said. “We want to work hard, improve and kick some butt. I’m pretty excited.”

Parsons, meanwhile, has racked up two monster seasons as the Pack’s starting centerfielder. She hit .317, led the team with 41 RBI, was second on the club with six home runs, scored 38 runs and tallied six assists.

She was also the softball team’s representative in the annual Wolf Pack/Reno Aces exhibition game.

The 2010 Fallon grad was one of the catalysts in producing the Mountain West’s best offense in 2013. Now, she aims to go out with yet another banner season, hopefully with a conference title and NCAA Tournament appearance in tow.

Despite her individual goals, Parson said it is important to play within herself.

“I just want to go out there and have fun and not think about it too much,” she added. “I want to enjoy the game and my teammates and make the most if it while I can.”

Parsons’ road, meanwhile, started on the ballfields of Fallon with a determined work ethic. As a catcher and third baseman in high school, she hit .486 with two home runs, 18 RBI, seven doubles and two triples.

She also played basketball and led the Lady Wave in scoring with 12.8 points per game in her senior season.

Her first season at Nevada in 2011, however, was eye opening. Parsons hit .050 (1-for20) in 21 games and committed six errors in the Western Athletic Conference.

Put off with her struggles on the field, Parsons went to work and hit the gym dedicating herself to becoming a starter and one of coach Matt Meuchel’s best.

Her work paid off as Parsons crushed opposing pitching her sophomore season. She started in all 57 games, hit .294 with 29 runs scored, three home runs, 23 RBI and was the Pack’s only selection for first-team All-WAC.

“She’s such a fiery competitior,” Nevada coach Matt Meuchel said. “We going to look for her to have another great year. The thing with her is she’s had a couple great years … she’s not a one-hit wonder. She will have a solid season for us.”

After another stellar season and career-best’s in just about every offensive category, Parsons is now focused on leading the Wolf Pack to the top of the mountain.

Despite failing to qualify for the postseason, Parsons’ offseason schedule remained consistent.

“(I’ve been) working hard and trying to improve,” she said. “Just observing the little things and paying attention to detail.”

The club rattled off a 30-23 record last season, finished fourth and fell short of earning a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

And before the mental science major wraps up her career, a conference title would be the crowning achievement.

“We are pretty confident coming off of last year,” Parsons said. “We knew we could have ended it a little better, we’ve just been working on the little things to correct that.”