Texas State's Megan Kelnar overcame a broken leg to fulfill her dream of college softball

As soon as Texas State softball catcher Megan Kelnar reached the summer of her junior year at Hays High School, she developed a habit. Nearly every day, she’d craft an email for Bobcats head coach Ricci Woodard. Whether it was after a win, a loss or just to inform Woodard of her week’s schedule, Kelnar flooded her coach’s inbox with messages for months.

“One of the first things she told me was that I was very persistent in my emails,” Kelnar said. MORE: Texas State secures its first 2027 football commitment MORE: Bobcats' roster begins to take shape through spring practice Kelnar’s parents are Texas State alumni. They used to take her to Bobcat Ballpark when she was a child, where she'd watch Texas State play and attend softball camps.

Kelnar said that once she conceptualized the idea of college sports, her goal became playing at Texas State. Now a Bobcats senior, the catcher has become a steady contributor, persevering through gruesome injuries, setbacks and countless hours of work. Kelnar has never been the most talented player on the field, but her natural ambition mixed with a love of the grind eventually turned her college dreams into reality.

A perfectionist then, a perfectionist now Kelnar's father, Kevin, said he isn’t exactly sure where his daughter got her perfectionism from. He said she'll drive home to Kyle from San Marcos, where she spends all day practicing softball and attending classes, and then sit down at her sewing machine for hours. Not because she has to.