Q & A Session: Kelbi Fortenberry

If a teammate could describe you in one word, what would it be?
KF: "Loud. All the time. I can bring my voice anywhere I go. While we're running, definitely playing in the outfield and even when we're hanging in the locker room, I am constantly yelling at everyone. "
 
What are you looking forward to in your senior year?
KF: "I am looking forward to our team being close and going through this season's highs and lows together as one. Just like any other sisterhood would. I am also looking forward to having success in our conference play this year.
 
What are some team and personal goals you have set for this season?
KF: "A team goal we have set is to prove everyone wrong. Playing in the SEC, it is thought that we are a team that stays in the bottom half of the conference. I am looking forward to us coming out of the gates strong for the first game to prove who we are and establish the vibe for the rest of the season.  For me personally, I need to stay healthy this year and take the right steps and precautions to do that."
 
How do you think you have grown as an athlete and a person over the last four years?
KF: "I have grown into a strong person over the last few years with softball, since it teaches you to take into account the little things. It has taught me what it means to be a leader, especially how to stand with the core values this university holds for everyone here. Each of our values has shaped me as a person. It has taught me to have respect for everyone, and have integrity with everything I do. As an athlete, I have learned to bring my best self all the time. No matter what the situation may throw my way."
 
Who has had the biggest impact on you and your career?
KF: "Coach Evans. She pushes me to be better each time I step on the field. I am constantly reminded by her to be my loud self. My position in centerfield is to be the voice of the outfield, so I have to be moving and talking the whole time. With that being said, I find myself being the leader and taking charge of things to help the underclassmen figure out where they need to be. They are learning every day and being able to be someone they look to is a rewarding feeling."
 
What would you say is your biggest accomplishment that you have fulfilled throughout your career?
KF: "My biggest accomplishment would be that I stayed consistent in my hitting last year. I never gave up through my freshman and sophomore years when I wasn't in the lineup every day. I learned to fight my way through into my junior year to make my impact on the team last season. I am looking forward to doing the same this year."
 
What is one piece of advice you would give to the freshmen?
KF: "My advice to the newbies is to never hold back. Don't ever feel as though you are not being heard. You should feel your opinion matters, ask all the questions you're thinking and be a student of the game."
 
What was it like playing your first game at Davis Diamond?
KF: "It was awesome to be able to play in front of a sold-out crowd on opening day. This university came together to represent the 12^th Man and had the loudest atmosphere I had ever experienced in all the years I have played."
 
Do you have an embarrassing moment while playing?
KF: "It would have to have been last year when I was warming up before a game in the outfield. Coach Jackson was hitting us groundballs and when I went to throw my right foot stepped on my left shoelace making me completely face plant. I, of course, turned red but everyone else who was out there lost it and could not stop laughing."
 
You were nominated a ton to be on the Bachelor on the informational questionnaires by your teammates, would you ever consider being on the show?
KF: "I 100% would. I love that show. My roommates will never understand why I like it so much. Anytime I try to watch it with them, I have to hide the remote so they couldn't change the channel on me."
 
What is your favorite Aggie tradition?
KF: "The Aggie Ring. Just because you don't realize how big it is until you go somewhere and someone notices it on your hand. I was in Canada this last summer and in the airport alone, I was stopped by three Aggies. They each introduced themselves with their class year to have a small conversation. It was awesome to see how a ring symbolizes something so big and bring together a community of people."
 
What do you want your lasting impact to be?
KF: "I want it to be that everyone knew I was going to give it my all, all the time, even in the times when my physical injuries didn't allow me to. I am still going to give everything I had every single day and be my teammate's biggest fan."