Hempfield Area softball has produced numerous talented players over the years. After longtime head coach Bob Kalp built the program to district and state prominence, the Spartans have continued to succeed under current head coach Tina Madison.

A big reason behind their dominance has been pitching, and one of those standout hurlers is taking her talents to the Division I level. Junior Julia Varhola recently made her commitment to James Madison University.

“I was very excited to figure out where I wanted to go,” she noted. “I’ve said to everyone I know, once I went to JMU, I knew it would be a future place I’d want to play at.”

She had been on the radar for numerous schools, with 19 programs interested in her talent. She narrowed her list of potential landing places down to Southern Florida, Illinois State, and James Madison.

Making the choice might’ve been easy, but the process to get there presented a different set of challenges.

“It was really nerve-racking, but exciting,” she added. “When September 1 came around, I didn’t expect to wake up with all of the interest. It was a stressful time, but I was thankful.”

Varhola was drawn to the school not just by the softball program, but the whole environment at James Madison.

“It was very, very important,” she mentioned. “When we went on a visit to James Madison, we ended up watching a football game there. The atmosphere was just way different from anything I had been around. It really pulled me in and all the bonding we got to do with the coaches there.”

She plans on majoring in kinesiology and minoring in business. The end goal is to attend physical therapy school and to open her own PT business one day.

But before she gets to that point, she wants to take softball as far as she can, even to the professional level.

Varhola still has two years left playing for Hempfield Area, and is eager to get back to the diamond this spring.

The Spartans’ season didn’t end the way they had envisioned, with a stunning playoff exit in the semifinals to Norwin. It was especially surprising since Hempfield Area was the reigning WPIAL champion.

However, it hasn’t deterred from the team getting back to work.

“We are doing fall ball right now, but we haven’t started up with everything quite yet,” the future Duke noted. “I feel this is the year that our whole team will push as hard as they can because we want to come back and win it again.”

Varhola has accomplished quite a bit in the two years she’s been with the Spartans. But there are still plenty of things she wants to check off her list before she heads off to college.

“I do hope that we, as a team, can get another WPIAL championship and maybe even a state championship,” she shared. “Our whole team is like a family and has so much talent to win it all again. I would like to accomplish that again, and getting to play with all of my friends.”