Larissa Franklin

Classroom

Larissa Franklin excels in the classroom, as she was named to the Chancellor’s List numerous times while at IPFW. Earning Academic All-Summit League honors, she was also a two-time selection to the Capital One Academic All-District List, including being named to the First Team last season.

Character

“Larissa is a great all-around student-athlete who excels in life,” said WKU head coach Amy Tudor, who coached Franklin in first two years at IPFW. “She impacts people and gives her very best to make herself better and those around her better. Whether it’s volunteering to help the coaches, helping a young freshman with her game outside of practice or figuring out ways to use her studies to impact our team chemistry, Larissa is constantly trying to impact others. She is very talented on the field, and her success has been noted by her joining the Canadian National Team. However, she is a leader, and her efforts go far beyond her athleticism and aptitude. She has the respect of everyone around her.”

Community

Franklin makes time to help her local community. She has helped raise awareness for domestic abuse with Chalk It Up, while raising money to buy mittens, hats and gloves for SCAN as well as for breast cancer research. Franklin has participated in food drives and the Suicide Prevention Walk. While at IPFW, she assisted in adopting families and buying them gifts at Christmas. In her short time at WKU, she has helped the team get Big Red’s Readers off the ground to help increase reading comprehension scores in local schools. Franklin has also been a volunteer for the Special Olympics in Kentucky.

Competition

Franklin’s athletic career has been nothing but exceptional, as she helped IPFW to its first-ever NCAA Regional in 2013. Last season, Franklin ranked eighth in the nation with a .459 batting average while setting a school record with 84 hits. Her talents exceeded the collegiate game, as she has played with the Canadian National Team multiple times and was recently one of 15 athletes selected to play for her home country in the Pan Am Games this summer. A Third-Team NFCA All-Region and an All-Conference honoree, Franklin will play a major part of WKU’s lineup and outfield in 2015.