Madison Anderson, a senior at Manitou Spring High School, has committed to Golden West Community College. Anderson plans to continue competing in softball and major in environmental science while attending GWC.
Anderson has been attending MSHS since kindergarten, and while being there, has participated in multiple sports and clubs. “I have played basketball all four years of high school and played soccer my sophomore year,” Anderson said. “I was also part of StuCo my freshman year as well.”
Softball has been a big part of Anderson’s life for the last 14 years and all started when she joined a T-ball team at just four years old. “I have been with the Altitude club softball team since eighth grade and then before that I was on a Denver club team,” Anderson said. “I have been on club teams since I was 10 years old.”
Even though MSHS does not have a softball program, Anderson found another way to still play high school softball. “After playing on the Denver club team, COVID hit, so it made things kind of weird after that; but then I started playing high school softball for Cheyenne Mountain High School and continued for all four years of high school,” Anderson said.
Anderson has expressed her love for the sport of softball through all of the years she has played. “I just love getting to play with my friends and being able to travel to so many cool places for club ball,” Anderson said.
Gabby Santos, a teacher and coach at MSHS, has been Anderson’s basketball coach for the past four years and has been her health teacher for the last year as well. “She’s a competitor and wants to compete in everything,” Santos said. “She wants to have everybody come up and play at that level with her.”
Anderson has looked up to many people in her life while playing softball. “Carlos Gonzalez, who played for the Colorado Rockies, is the whole reason that I play softball and have number five for my jersey number,” Anderson said.
While playing softball, Anderson has learned multiple positions on the field that have led her to where she plays now. “I played as a catcher when I was little, then second base when I got older, and now I play positions in the outfield,” she said.
A big part of Anderson wanting to commit to GWC was because of its program in environmental science and being able to get a good start in her degree towards that. “I also wanted to be in a warm place because I am a warm type of person and there are a lot of good bigger transfer schools out there too, so that is why I really chose it,” Anderson said.
Santos has seen Anderson grow and open up with many teammates and classmates over her years of coaching and teaching her. “The funny thing is, if you see her from the outside, I think most people see her as a stone faced serious person; but the more time you spend with her, she is very, very silly and always has really high energy with everything she does and cracking jokes,” Santos said.
Anderson has made plans to continue her college path after junior college as well. “I will probably transfer to a bigger four year school to finish my degree to eventually be a park ranger, and I would like to play another few years of softball there too,” Anderson said.
Santos expressed how she can see Anderson pursuing softball more after graduating GWC. “She has spent a lot of time figuring out what the best option was for her after high school,” Santos said. “She has considered academics and especially softball involving not only opportunities of how to just play next year, but what sets her up for the most potential after those two junior college years and across a lifetime.”
Ashlynn Oriet • Jan 28, 2026 at 8:57 am
This is a fantastic profile of Madison Anderson! You’ve done a great job of illustrating how a student-athlete can navigate challenges—like her school not having a softball program—to still pursue their passion at a high level. The transition from her early days in T-ball to her commitment to Golden West Community College provides a clear, inspiring narrative arc for the reader.
I particularly enjoyed the contrast provided by Coach Santos regarding Madison’s “stone-faced” exterior versus her “silly” interior; it adds a layer of personality that makes the subject feel much more relatable and human. The inclusion of her career goal to become a park ranger also ties her major in environmental science to a concrete future, which rounds out the story nicely. For future pieces, you might consider adding a few more specific details about her statistical achievements on the field to further highlight her competitive edge. Overall, this is a well-structured and engaging feature!