EUGENE, Ore. -- For many athletes there is a correlation between the fight on the athletic field and the fight necessary to get there. For others, the former falls far short of the latter. Kelsey Hansen is in the second category.
As a softball player for Northwest Christian University, Kelsey dreaded her 5 a.m. team workouts but knew, once they were over, she got to enjoy being a college student. That all changed in January of 2017, when a persistent cough took her to see her doctor. What started as a routine checkup ended in a diagnosis of Hodgkins Lymphoma. The next 5 a.m. workout instantly became insignificant as she and her doctor developed a plan for how to fight the disease.
After 12 rounds of chemotherapy, Kelsey is now cancer free and was able to return to her softball team this spring. She recently played in her final collegiate softball game, going 3 for 5 from the plate on senior day. After graduation this weekend, she is set to begin the next chapter of her life - one that could have looked much different 18 months ago.