Conquering the Playing Field
Vanessa Shippy was a standout on the softball field and in the classroom at OSU.
By John Helsley
Vanessa Shippy rarely finds herself with time to kill. After all, she’s a top Spears School of Business student chasing two degrees (plus a minor!) and putting in the work needed to maintain her status as one of the Big 12’s best softball players.
Besides, down time makes her anxious.
“Even when I have some free time, I’m like, ‘There’s something I should be doing right now,” Shippy said. “I’ve either got some homework, some studying, some softball, I should be giving a lesson, something.’”
It’s the busiest of times that bring out the best of times in Shippy, a recent Oklahoma State graduate from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
“I love the challenge, actually,” she said.
Responds to the challenge, too.
Shippy charged toward the end of her academic and athletic careers with honors. She was named a Top 5 finance student at the Spears School of Business 65th Annual Honors and Awards Banquet. Inside the locker room at Cowgirl Stadium, she was revered as one of the team’s respected leaders, a holder of several program records, named 2018 Big 12 Player of the Year, a reigning member of the All-Big 12 first team and a two-time Academic All-American.
And there’s more, with Shippy attaining degrees in finance and marketing, as well as a minor in accounting. Oh, and she’s already received her Series 65 license, passing that test during the fall semester — on her first try — to officially become a financial adviser.
“That’s an unusual accomplishment for a student,” said Betty Simkins, head of the Department of Finance.
And there’s still more: Shippy was one of 10 finalists for the 2018 Senior CLASS Award, recognizing the senior athlete nationally showing notable achievement with what the award classifies as the Four Cs — community, classroom, character and competition. Away from the field, she collected and delivered clothing donations to the Wings of Hope Family Crisis Services center; read stories to classes at Sangre Ridge Elementary; cleaned and fed kittens at Tiny Paws Kitten Rescue; collected food, clothing and money and put together Thanksgiving food boxes for families in need for the Salvation Army. Shippy also took part in several Coaches vs. Cancer events at OSU and offered softball lessons to young players and teams in the area.
“The business school, I’m very aware of how hard that is over there,” said Cowgirls coach Kenny Gajewski. “There’s a lot of pride over there. It’s amazing for a kid like her to perform on the field like she does, but also to perform off the field and in the classroom with the type of majors that she has. It’s insane at times.
“And it’s never fazed her. That’s what’s nuts. She’s never shown me that she was fazed. She may go home and be fazed, but she’s never fazed here. That’s why her success in both is so good, because she just knows how to handle it all.”
Actually, Shippy just doesn’t allow herself to be fazed by the various demands of her life, preferring instead to stay ahead of the stress. For her, that meant never procrastinating and attacking classwork in the same way she attacks opposing pitchers, which is with focus and fury.
It’s a strategy that kept her comfortably ahead, preventing the need for finishing homework on late-night bus rides back from road games.
“I’ve always been one step ahead in my planning,” Shippy said.
As a high school athlete, Shippy regularly traveled to California on weekends to face the best softball competition. “I knocked out my homework on the flights,” she said. “So high school was very good practice for me and what I was going to be facing here for four years.
“It’s obviously a lot more crazy, but our academic staff and our coaching staff are great about making sure that’s important to us and making sure our work is done. And if our work’s not done, we’re not on the field. That’s enough motivation for me to get my work done, because I want to be on the field.”
Shippy didn’t just get the work done, either. She welcomed challenges, such as the Series 65 exam, and thrived in a way that made her professors take notice. Thus, the Top 5 nomination and award.
Shippy was a two-time Big 12 Player of the Year and two-time Academic All-American.
“Vanessa Shippy is very talented academically and athletically,” Simkins said. “She is an exceptional student who was able to juggle her demanding academic studies and at the same time maintain her outstanding athletic performance. She excels in both areas.
“Vanessa serves as an excellent role model for all student athletes. We are very proud of her.”
Shippy became a vital cog in the Cowgirls’ recent rise to national prominence. A four-year starter, she held eight school records in late April and was in pursuit of more.
Beyond the games, Shippy said she carries a deep respect for what the opportunity to play has meant and enjoys sharing that with youngsters.
“I love my role as a collegiate athlete,” she said. “There’s never going to be another time in my life where just stepping on a field with a certain piece of clothing on, my uniform, will have such an effect on kids as there is now.
“I’ve really been taking that role seriously, reaching out to young girls and teams as I can to just help motivate them; not just on the softball field, but to be better people and to be great students. I like the influence I get to have on those kids. Who knows how long I’ll be able to have that much of an impact, so I’ve really stepped that up over the last four years.”
Shippy does know what’s next for her professionally. With her degrees and the Series 65 certification — a securities license required by most states to work as an investment adviser — she’ll be well positioned for a career.
And she plans to attack that with her signature zeal.
“I think what’s cool is you have to dig into someone’s life and figure out what they need and how you can help them,” Shippy said. “That’s a long-term plan. It’s not just one thing they’re going to need; they’re going to have different needs throughout their whole life. So it’s kind of cool that you can be invested in someone and helping them while still using that finance base.”
Among all the records and awards Shippy has collected at OSU, the Top 5 Finance award caught her by surprise. She wasn’t even aware of the academic awards, yet appreciated the honor just the same.
And she enjoyed sharing the news.
“I received that email and I shared it with my parents,” Shippy said.
“That may actually be one of the awards that they’re most proud of.
“Our finance program here at OSU is great. I’ve been lucky to make some great friends at school. It’s fun to get to know people and kind of build my business community. It’s very, very cool. I’m very appreciative.”