CEDAR CITY, Utah - About 364,103 athletes play high school softball. When you get to the college level that number drops to roughly 19,628 with only 1.7 percent of athletes going from high school to a Division I program. The select few that earn the privilege of being able to play for an elite Division I softball program usually have to move away from their teammates, friends and families to do so. To be able to follow your dream, in the town you grew up in, with your best friend at your side the entire way, would be a rarity. Some might say it is impossible to do.

Try telling that to SUU softball players Javlyn Weaver and Hannah Williams.

Javlyn and Hannah's playing days go all the way back to playing little league softball together right here in Cedar City. When Hannah was in 7th grade and Javlyn was in 8th, they were on a softball travel team that had a chance to play in the Little League Softball World Series. When they got to high school, they both played softball for the Cedar High Redmen.

Now they both find themselves with the opportunity to play Division I softball for the Southern Utah Thunderbirds and head coach Tom Gray. This will be their first year of collegiate softball together with Williams being a true freshman and Weaver being a sophomore and already having a year of play under her belt.

“My freshman year was a lot faster paced and there was a big learning curve and it was hard to keep up with the speed, but I got used to it,” Weaver said of her college experience so far. “Now in my sophomore year I feel a lot more comfortable with the girls and the atmosphere.”

Even though the team has only played two fall games so far, the two love being able to play together again. “It's funny more than anything. In the second game against Dixie I was catching and she was playing shortstop just like in high school and I threw it down to her and it was just like old times,” Williams said.

Both of them always knew they wanted to play softball in college, but never knew it would be at SUU. “Growing up I always wanted to play Division I softball, but there was always that thought of 'Am I good enough?' and now that I'm here there is a ton of excitement. There is a ton of support from the community. I'm still kind of in the overwhelming stage, but I'm enjoying it. Everyday I feel like I'm improving,” Williams said.

“We're both pre-med students and SUU is great for that so it is a bonus that we get to play a game that we love while we are here,” Weaver said.

Playing at SUU will give them three more years of being able to compete together in Cedar City and hopefully at least one more chance to compete on the national stage.

To stay up to date during the games and throughout the 2016-17 season follow @SUUSoftball on Twitter and Instagram and like the SUU Softball page on Facebook.