Lauryn Helmick was just looking to continue her education, play a little softball and enjoy her first year away from home when she signed to play softball at Black Hawk College last year.

Helmick has gotten all of that, and then some.

Helmick, a 2024 graduate of Fort Madison High School, helped the Braves qualify for the NJCAA Division II Softball World Series this week in Oxford, Alabama.

For Helmick, a middle infielder for the Braves, it has been a dream season, and she hopes to keep the dream alive a few more days.

“My goals heading into nationals is to hopefully win it all,” Helmick said. “Something we’ve been saying a lot is ‘play like there’s nothing to lose.’ I think this has helped us out tremendously because we aren’t afraid to mess up. We just go out there and play the game like we know how to.”

Helmick has done just that this season. In 41 games, Helmick is hitting .368 with a .431 on-base percentage and a .456 slugging percentage. In 114 at bats, she had 42 hits, including seven doubles and one home run. She has scored 27 runs and driven in 31 runs. She has walked 13 times, been hit by a pitch one and struck out 16 times.

She has helped Black Hawk to a 47-15 record, most wins in program history. The Braves were a perfect 20-0 in Region IV.

Helmick said the biggest adjustment has been to the pitching at the college level, which is the equivalent of facing a staff ace every game in high school.

“I would say speed is definitely a big difference, as well as pitchers having a lot more spin and movement on their ball,” Helmick said.

Last season for Fort Madison, Helmick hit .389 with a .463 on-base percentage and a .457 slugging percentage. She had six doubles and one triple, scored 27 runs and drove in 18 runs.

With a rigorous and demanding schedule, Helmick quickly learned how to manage her time wisely to keep on top of her studies between softball practices, games and road trips.

“I set a certain amount of time during each day for me to do school work. We also have study tables so that helps a lot with getting homework done,” Helmick said. “I would say the biggest adjustment is time management. Figuring out when you do your homework and when you can rest and get a break from everything. We practice everyday so figuring out time for yourself is very important”