Finding her home

Kenleigh Cahalan was simply searching for the place that felt like home.

She found that feeling in Tuscaloosa, as soon as she walked onto the field at Rhoads Stadium.

Cahalan, one of the top position players in the Class of 2023, announced her commitment to the University of Alabama softball program Friday. 

“I just had to find my home,” the Hewitt-Trussville High infielder told the Cahaba Sun. “I had to find what felt right for me when I walked on that field.”

On her official visit to Alabama, Cahalan was blown away. She toured campus and met Alabama football coach Nick Saban, which would have been the highlight of her trip had she not felt so much love from everyone in the Alabama softball program that day.

Many of Cahalan’s future teammates surprised her at the softball field that day and welcomed her to campus with open arms. They even played a game of kickball together.

“That was a really fun experience,” she said.

Patrick Murphy has been the head coach at Alabama since 1999, taking the Crimson Tide to the Women’s College World Series 13 times in that span and winning the national title in 2012. Cahalan definitely plans to play a part in bringing the program another championship and is looking forward to playing for Murphy.

“He’s just a great guy overall,” she said. “He cares about you, not only as an athlete, but as a person, he’s always going to support you.”

In a couple years, Cahalan will join one of the top programs in the nation, which also just happens to be an hour west of her home in Trussville. One of her former high school teammates, Jenna Lord, signed with Alabama last spring and will be reunited with Cahalan in Tuscaloosa.

“It feels so good to have my family close by and they can come by and watch,” she said. “It’s really fun to have them there and knowing that they’ll be there every game they can.”

In the meantime, there is still work to be done at Hewitt-Trussville. Cahalan has already piled up accolades through the first three years of her varsity career. As an eighth grader, she produced one clutch hit after another, racking up 15 runs batted in on the way to Hewitt-Trussville’s first state championship.

In 2021, Cahalan was a force, hitting for a .523 average with 17 home runs and 86 RBIs as the Huskies earned a second state title. That was good enough to earn her the distinction as the Class 7A Hitter of the Year by the Alabama Sports Writers Association and a first-team spot on the all-state team.

She sees more success ahead for the Huskies in her final two seasons.

“I feel like we’re going to take it a long way, because we’ve got a group of girls that want to be here. Everybody has great relationships with each other,” Cahalan said.

Cahalan expressed much gratitude toward her family, especially her parents and younger sister for the long days and weekends and time spent supporting her softball career. She also is excited about the prospect of her grandparents and other relatives being able to see her play in college as well. 

High school juniors are allowed to be contacted for the first time by college coaches Sept. 1. Cahalan waited up the night before, simply hoping a few coaches would reach out and express interest. There was a never a question of that, but she certainly got the call she was looking for.

“There’s great relief and it’s exciting, because I know I made the right decision,” she said. “Alabama is like another home to me.”