Former Niceville star Hansen shines for MSU

Although Lindsey Hansen pretty much owned high school pitching while at Niceville, she said it wasn’t nearly as easy as it may have looked.

So imagine the difficulty when she arrived at Michigan State University as a freshman and was introduced to marquee Division I pitching. The potent combination of velocity, movement and precision that virtually every hurler in the Big Ten possessed humbled Hansen — she hit .218 her rookie campaign — and made her question whether she’d ever become an impact player.

“I never would have thought I would come this far,” said Hansen, who clearly has made her mark after being named third-team All-Big Ten as a shortstop. “It was a big transition.”

And one she smoothly made from her freshman to junior season.

Hansen was by far the biggest force in the Spartans’ lineup this season. Her .368 batting average was seventh in the conference and 40 points better than her nearest teammate. She also led Michigan State in home runs (11), doubles (18), hits (57), runs (30) and slugging percentage (.723) while exuding a confidence that was absent during her first year.

“I was definitely going into (this season) with high expectations,” said Hansen, who was fourth in the Big Ten with 112 total bases. “I wanted to go out and prove myself and put up big numbers and help as much I could.”

It’s hard to see how she could have helped any more.

Buoyed by her terrific junior campaign, Hansen is starting to etch her name among Michigan State’s greats. For her career, she’s now fourth in home runs with 22 (record is 31), eighth in extra-base hits (57) and 10th in batting average (.308). Her 30 doubles places her just one outside of the Top 10.

When Hansen headed to Michigan State, she wanted to make a push toward the home-run record. Duplicating her sophomore year, when she cranked 10, or the 11 she blasted her junior season would break the all-time mark.

“It’s like they say, records are meant to be broken,” Hansen said. “I would feel good to break it and then somebody in the future can break mine.”

Hansen attributed her considerable improvement at the plate over her first three seasons to extra work in the batting cage and an aggressive approach where she constantly reminds herself to “see the ball, hit the ball.”

As the All-Big Ten honor attests, she’s certainly delivering on her mantra.

“As long as I had that mentality,” she said, “I was pretty successful.”