By Aaron Litzinger, WSU News intern
PULLMAN, Wash. – While waiting for the cold rain to stop in Berkeley, Calif., in March, Lindsay Weber thought to herself, “The baseball team might have to stay an extra day.” Weather is just one of the challenges and unknowns Weber encounters in her job as Washington State University baseball operations coordinator.
“You always have to have a back-up plan and be ready for the unexpected,” she said recently.
Weber has been with the team about a year. Baseball quickly has moved up next to football as her favorite sports.
“There is so much more going on than I originally thought,” she said. “The players in the field are thinking a lot about what could happen next, and there is a lot of strategy behind it all.”
“There is so much more going on than I originally thought,” she said. “The players in the field are thinking a lot about what could happen next, and there is a lot of strategy behind it all.”
A Coug returns, learns the ropes
Weber graduated from WSU in 2006 with a degree in psychology and went to work for an engineering firm in the front office. In January 2008, she returned to WSU to work for the College of Education briefly, then moved to the College of Business.
There she learned the skills necessary to take on a large, challenging project.
“I had to help set up the business plan competition for the entrepreneur program,” she said. “It is a two-day event that includes 50 to 60 judges and 120 to 150 students.”
There she learned the skills necessary to take on a large, challenging project.
“I had to help set up the business plan competition for the entrepreneur program,” she said. “It is a two-day event that includes 50 to 60 judges and 120 to 150 students.”
Planning and execution
With Cougar baseball, Weber’s schedule is balanced between work in the office and out. Meetings take up most of the office time. The outside work involves finding transportation for the team, arranging meals and booking hotels.
“Nothing has gone wrong yet,” she said. “There have been no missing bus issues or having no place to sleep.”
“Nothing has gone wrong yet,” she said. “There have been no missing bus issues or having no place to sleep.”
Busy in the off-season
On top of that, Weber is involved with fundraising for the athletic department. She works closely with two events in particular – alumni weekend and the night with cougar baseball.
In the off-season, she helps with summer baseball camps hosted by the team and fall recruitment activities for potential players.
“My favorite part of this job is working with the team and coaches,” Weber said. “They’re all great. And I love to travel and work for the athletic department. I’m never bored.”