March 11, 2011

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BERKELEY - Since there are a whopping eight freshman on the California softball team, CalBears.com helps you put the names to the faces with a series of Q&As with the freshmen. Next up is Taylor Vincent, a catcher who joins fellow Foothill High School letterwinner Valerie Arioto as the second Pleasanton, Calif., native on the squad. Vincent said that her best sports moment was storming Easton Stadium in Oklahoma City after her team won the national championship last summer. At Foothill, she was first-team All-League in 2010 and led the squad to 2007 EBAL and NCS championships not to mention an EBAL title in 2008. Vincent should adapt easily to Cal's rigorous academics for she was a North Coast Section CIF scholar-athlete from 2007-2010 and a member of the National Honor Society in 2010. Additionally, she founded and served as president of the Physics Club as a prepster, was a three-time recipient of the Falcon Pride Award and made the Principal's List every year from 2007-2010. As a completely well-rounded student-athlete, Vincent also held the office of vice president during her junior year and president as a senior.

CalBears.com: What made you chose Cal?
Taylor Vincent: The combination of a top softball program and a highly ranked physics undergraduate program.

CalBears.com: What are your hobbies outside of softball?
TV: Playing Nerf basketball.

CalBears.com: Do you have any unique stories about yourself that set you apart from your teammates?
TV: I fell in love with physics when I was a junior in high school, to the point where I founded and was the president of my high school physics club.

CalBears.com: What's your favorite part about Berkeley and/or the Cal campus?
TV: My favorite part about Berkeley is the interesting homeless people you meet.

CalBears.com: What is the best thing about being a part of Cal softball?
TV: The best thing about being a part of Cal softball is the opportunity to further my softball skills while playing in a highly ranked program.

CalBears.com: Did you grow up watching Cal athletics? What has it been like to represent them?
TV: Yes. It has been very exciting for me since I grew up watching players wearing the Cal colors.

CalBears.com: What has been your favorite part about college life so far?
TV: My favorite part of college life so far is meeting new people.

CalBears.com: What are you planning on or thinking of majoring in?
TV: Physics.

CalBears.com: What has been the hardest, most surprising aspect about transitioning from high school to college?
TV: The hardest aspect is creating an equilibrium between sports and schoolwork.

CalBears.com: What class did you most enjoying to this fall?
TV: Physics 7a. We had very exciting demonstrations including shooting toy monkeys with ping pong balls and shooting a block of wood with a .22 caliber gun.

CalBears.com: Now that you're well into your second semester of college, what advice do you wish someone had told you about college or would you give to incoming student-athletes?
TV: Go to all your classes because sometimes the professors go over things that aren't in the textbook.

CalBears.com: What would you like to be doing in 10 years?
TV: I would like to have a Ph.D. in biophysics and working on the advancement of human prosthetics.

CalBears.com: Which three people would you invite to dinner?
TV: Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton and James Clerk Maxwell.

CalBears.com: With whom would you want to be stranded on a deserted island?
TV: My mother and my father. My father for his survival skills and my mother for her cooking skills.

CalBears.com: Do you have any special pre-game rituals?
TV: Before every game and practice I touch my lucky Superman action figure.

CalBears.com: If you could make a cameo on any TV show, which one would you choose? TV: "Chuck."

CalBears.com: When you were a little kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
TV: When I was a little kid, I wanted to fly fighter jets for the U.S. Air Force.

CalBears.com: If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would buy?
TV: The first thing I would buy is a Waverunner.

CalBears.com: What is one thing you can't live without?
TV: One thing I can't live without is chocolate.