Ella Cunningham details her softball journey

From dominating Tennessee high school softball all the way to Troy’s circle, Ella Cunningham’s career has been shaped by poise and persistence. 

Cunningham started her softball career at a very young age, deciding between softball and dance. 

“When I was little, I had to choose between softball and dance, and my parents didn’t think I was a dancer, so I went straight into softball,” Cunningham said. “My dad played baseball in college, and it was natural for me -- softball really was just easy for me.” 

Cunningham was successful from a very young age as she was named MaxPreps Tennessee Player of the Year, 2024 MaxPreps High School All-American and 2024 NFCA High School All-American. She broke records, like the Silverdale season strikeout record with 368, and finished her senior season hitting .585 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs, while pitching 192.1 innings with 35 wins and a 0.58 ERA. 

Cunningham says these accolades shaped her as an athlete in both positive and negative ways. 

“It made me into kind of a perfectionist, which isn’t great,” Cunningham said. “But it made me not want to fail. 

“I would get angry if I did badly in a game, but I would go home and work on it and switch it around. I wouldn’t do bad for a couple of weeks, and then it just grew as I played.” 

Cunningham first signed with Michigan State to play at the collegiate level, moving almost 10 hours away from home. In the transition, she says being a spring athlete far from home can be difficult. 

“It was hard to understand how your body moves more than what you already did,” Cunningham said. “Originally, it’s your hips, your hands, and now it’s more of when to do it, where to do it and how to do it. 

“It’s finer detail, and it was hard for me to adjust that way because of how they taught.” 

After one year at Michigan State, Cunningham entered the transfer looking for a team that felt like home. 

“When I hit the portal, I just really wanted to find somewhere I could grow in my spiritual journey and grow in my athletic journey too,” Cunningham said. “I talked to a lot of coaches, but my very first call was with Coach Newell and Coach Nate, and they were very enthusiastic. 

“They talked about how they saw me play in high school; Coach Nate talked about how good I could be. We talked about my experiences and how I wanted to go somewhere that wanted me, valued me and appreciated my hard work. I went on a visit here the very next day, the portal opened Sunday, I was here Monday. I stepped on campus and I said, ‘This is where I want to be and this feels like home’ and I felt like a better person than when I showed up.” 

As Cunningham has settled into Troy this year, she has gotten to grow on both sides of the ball. Most colleges prefer an athlete to play just one side, but Troy gave Cunningham a chance to be a powerhouse on both ends, and it has paid off.  

This season so far, Cunningham is hitting .340 with seven home runs and 30 RBI. In the circle, she has a 3.06 ERA and 59 strikeouts. In a matchup against Alabama State, Cunningham had 17 strikeouts against the Hornets and has powered the Trojans back in multiple games with timelyhome runs and hits.  

“They said ‘If you could be good at both, we want you here all the time, we want you to hit the ball for us, we want you to pitch in the circle for us, we want you to throw the winning game and hit the winning run at the same time,” Cunningham said. “It is just so awesome, and I love it.” 

Cunningham had a massive pinch-hit homer against Southern Miss on Mar. 29. She’s been called on when the Trojans need a run, or even a home run, and that position doesn’t come without pressure. 

“It is the fact that he [Newell] can trust me enough to put me in the moment and know I can do this,” Cunningham said. “It helps me because I came from a school that once you mess up, you’re done. 

“At Troy, you build credibility, one bad start won’t affect you.” 

Cunningham was drawn to Troy for many reasons, but the friendships she has made have allowed her to be herself and fully enjoy the sport she loves. She is always reminded of perspective and how blessed she is to be at Troy. 

“I lead a lot of the cheers,” Cunningham said. “I like my walkup songs a lot so I dance during them, I might dance in the circle a little bit. 

“We just have a lot of fun. We have perspective of places we have been and experienced, and we remind ourselves this is always better than what we had.”