Taylor Campagna prepares for a busy night as a Phillies ball girl. PHOTO COURTESY OF TAYLOR CAMPAGNA
Katelyn Auty
Head Copy Editor
Social Media Editor
As a college student, it can be hard to find a job or internship that works with your school and extracurricular schedule. Luckily, Millersville student Taylor Campagna, found just what she was looking for as a Philadelphia Phillies ball girl.
Although ball girls are typically seen as someone who sits on the side of the field and collects foul balls, Campagna explains that they are also very active members of the community.
“A ball girl participates in over 100 community events, both at the ballpark and throughout the New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware area,” says Campagna. “They also act as role models for younger softball players by hosting camps and clinics and teaching them about playing the sport of softball.”
Campagna got involved with the Phillies after attending a college night hosted by the team, an event she was encouraged to attend by Dr. Daniel Keefer, the chair of the Wellness and Sport Sciences department at Millersville.
“I’ve played sports my entire life,” says Campagna. “I’ve played softball since I was five, when it was considered t-ball. I’ve also been a Philadelphia sports fan since I was four. So, when I knew I wanted to pursue a career in sports, I felt that this was a great opportunity to kind of get my foot in the door and to get to know some of the individuals within the organization.”
What really sealed the deal for Campagna was the ability to use this opportunity as her internship for school.
“Once I found out it could be my internship, I was like, ‘Oh, I’m all for this.’ I think that’s what really drew me in, is it connected my love for sports and my love for Philadelphia sports with this new passion that I found in sports business and sports journalism,” shared Campagna.
Campagna is a dual major in both sports business and sports journalism, a member of Millersville’s softball team, on the executive board for the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and an assistant to Ethan Halsey, the head of athletic communications at Millersville.
“In the fall, I made a deal to myself that everything that I had work-wise with the Phillies and with Ethan was going to be a big priority for me because I knew that that is what’s going to help me get to the next step in my career,” Campagna explained.
In order to balance all of her responsibilities, Campagna shared that using her planner to stay on top of everything has been a big key to her success, as well as prioritizing what is most important to her.
“I would definitely say it’s a time commitment for sure. There’s over 80 games that happen at home. Not that I can work all of them, obviously, because I’m also a student, but there’s definitely been days where I’ve not felt my best or I had a rough day at work before or a rough week at school,” confessed Campagna. “The summer days are hot. They are long. They are sweaty. So it’s definitely understandable that this is an opportunity that not many people get. I really do try my hardest not to complain. But there’s definitely really hot nights or days or really cold nights during the postseason that get to you.”
Despite the challenges that come with battling the grueling temperatures of the summer or balancing a very full schedule, Campagna speaks fondly of her experiences as a ball girl, especially her experiences seeing the children at games.
“I would say my favorite part is seeing the kids’ reactions to when I meet them, when I give them a ball, when I’m teaching them at a clinic. Seeing the smile and excitement that they have in that moment, it’s, I can’t even describe it,” Campagna recalled fondly. “It just makes me so happy because I know I just made their entire day with that small little action of just saying hi or handing them a ball card or even getting to give them a ball. It makes their whole day, their week, their month. I understand as a kid how much that little moment could mean because it meant so much to me when it happened to me. So now that I can do that for someone else, it’s pretty full circle.”
Campagna noted that those moments, as well as the opportunity to have an internship in a field that she loves, make her excited to go to work every day.
“I think that’s also just really cool because a lot of people come back from their internships and they’re like, ‘it was just like an internship’ where I’m like, ‘I want to go back. I can’t wait to be back,’” Campaga shared. “I love every second of it.”