Ready for another female athlete success story out of Marist?
I’ve got an excellent one here.
Cassie Lindmark had a four-year career for the RedHawks as one of the Southland’s best catchers. Now, she’s hitting up a storm during her junior season at Penn State.
Going into the week, Lindmark was batting a team-best .386 with three doubles, two home runs and 12 RBIs. Behind the plate, she has played errorless ball, throwing one runner out trying to steal.
“It feels really good,” Lindmark said. “It feels like my hard work is finally paying off.”
You might be thinking, “Wait a minute. Penn State?” Yeah, Cassie is not at Kentucky anymore. Which leads us to a tale of honesty, disappointment, courage and resilience.
Lindmark was, in every sense of the word, a high school field general at Marist, especially during her final two seasons.
She was a clutch hitter who found various ways to get on base. Behind the plate, she was a calming influence on the pitching staff, with a cannon for an arm.
“Cassie set a good standard for our team, for our culture that it is today,” Marist coach Colleen Phelan said. “She was always team first. She always put the team above herself. That’s one thing I’ll always remember her by.
“It doesn’t surprise me at all that she’s having the success she’s having. I’m just really excited she’s getting an opportunity to play.”
When Lindmark arrived at Kentucky, sophomore Kayla Kowalik had already established herself as the No. 1 catcher. Kowalik set the program record for on-base percentage by a freshman.
Kowalik has since become an All-American. During her junior season, she led the SEC in batting average.
Lindmark faced a stark realization.
“It was tough for me to even see the field,” Lindmark said. “Kayla’s an All-American and she’s awesome. She was my roommate. I have nothing but nice things to say about her. I love her to death.”
At the end of the 2021 season, the coaching staff at Kentucky realized they made a mistake — not in recruiting Lindmark but by putting her in an impossible situation.
They resolved it in what had to be an excruciatingly painful conversation.
“The coaches told me, ‘We love you. We just want you to play,'” Lindmark said. “They told me it would be best for me to go somewhere else.”
Just wow. I can’t even imagine that conversation. I can’t even imagine the disappointment, the feeling of rejection.
But Lindmark tried not to look at it that way.
“Of course, it was rough,” Lindmark said. “I was very upset. I know a lot of people would get angry at the coaches, but you can’t have hate and anger when they just want the best for you — for you to succeed.
“I’m incredibly thankful for everything they taught me. Even though I wasn’t able to show my talents on the field there, they truly taught me a lot. I just had to move on. I had to look forward to the next chapter.”
She found help from her travel coach, Jerry Quinn, who spread the word in the college world.
Penn State coach Clarisa Crowell and assistant Jeff Tylka were already familiar with Lindmark. Crowell had coached at Miami of Ohio and Tylka at Loyola.
“We both knew in our respective areas she was a little out of our league and was going to go to a Power Five school,” Crowell said. “When we saw her name in the transfer portal, we knew she was somebody we wanted to pursue.
“I talked to the Kentucky coach. She said she loved Cassie, but it was just a difficult situation. I give her credit for being honest with her. I told Cassie I would be here for her at Happy Valley.”
Lindmark was back on the field for Penn State during the fall league. I’ve already told you how she’s doing now. The field general is back in charge.
The main photo of her catching for Penn State that goes along with this story pretty much says it all about how she feels.
Look at that smile.
“It feels great, it feels rewarding,” Lindmark said. “What I went through was a hardship in my life. I got through it, and now, I’m happier than ever.
“It’s just great to finally be on the field and play and have fun. That’s why people play the game — to have fun.”
No one deserves the opportunity more.
