Georgette Elms
is hitting the road

By Melissa Yerkov
Times Sports Editor

Georgette Elms is enjoying her time in Philly while she can.
Because in a few weeks, she’ll be heading south for the summer. And then she’ll be returning north for the fall, to start her college career at Bloomsburg University.
"My family lives down in the southern states —Texas and Oklahoma — so I’ll be heading down there for the summer before I go away to college," said Elms. "I haven’t been there since I was little, so I’m really excited to see my family. It’ll be a lot of fun. I love riding the horses there."
For the moment, though, the Rhawnhurst resident has one more softball season to finish with Northeast High’s Vikings. And the four-year varsity player wants to make this final season count.
"I played when we won the championship my freshman year," said Elms. "I’m hoping to repeat that this year. We have a very young team, and some of them have never played before. But we practice every day. We practice in the heat, rain, anything. And we always go out there and try our best."
The Vikings are struggling this season, having lost much of the team to graduation in 2006. Last year, they posted a league record of 9-2. They beat Girls High in the playoffs but then lost to Central in the Public League championship game.
This season, the Vikings have one senior — Elms.
"We are struggling a lot because we have such a young team," said coach Mitch Kline, who has been leading the Vikings for four years. "But they are the nicest group of athletes I have had the pleasure of coaching in the past four years. Record-wise, they don’t have a lot of success, but improvement-wise, they do."
Being the lone senior is no easy task. But while most experienced athletes may struggle with the responsibility of guiding a young squad, Elms welcomes the opportunity to help her teammates.
"I always love being the captain of teams," said Elms, who also was captain of the Vikings’ basketball and field hockey teams this year. "I take full pride in that. But if we make mistakes, it’s my mistake. I try to help coach the girls as much as I can, and I love helping them."
With a 3-2 loss to Washington High School on May 2, the Vikings had a 7-3-1 record. Elms rocked a two-run homer in the third inning, the centerfielder’s second home run of the season.
"She’s very knowledgeable and is a great leader for the younger girls," said Kline. "She is a great athlete and has a lot of talent."
When Elms is not dazzling fans on the softball diamond, she is turning heads on the Vikings’ basketball court. The shooting guard led her Northeast team to a 14-10 season, including an 11-game winning streak.
And in the fall, as a winger, Elms helped guide Northeast to the Public League field hockey title for the second consecutive season.
"I can’t wait to play sports in college," said Elms. "I plan to play as much as I can . . . of course basketball, and maybe softball and field hockey intramural stuff, and something else like ultimate Frisbee. I’ll play anything that’ll keep me going — I love to stay active."
Elms, of course, also anticipates the academic challenges that await at Bloomsburg University. She expects to do just as well in the classroom.
"They have a great political science program, which is what I plan to study," said Elms, currently a straight-A student at Northeast. "I want to get into a government role. I love politics. The various political views have always interested me."
Elms has a lot on the line as she makes the transition to college life, but the 17-year-old has no worries about the journey.
"I’ll be the first one going to college in my family," said Elms. "But I’m really excited for the opportunity. I’m going to college for my academics. And if I play a sport, I’ll play a sport. But academics are first.
"My mom is a really strong believer in that," she continued. "I had to have all my homework and studying done before I could go play sports. She always said that books come first, then athletics."
Mothers do know best.
And since Elms and her mom are more like best friends, any advice is appreciated.
"I’ve always been extremely close with my mom," said Elms. "It’s going to be a little rough going away to college because I’m going to miss her tremendously. But I think Bloomsburg is going to be really good for me. It’s a new experience." ••
Sports editor Melissa Yerkov can be reached at 215-354-3035 or myerkov@phillynews.com