Cardinal High School senior Maclain Hickenbottom has committed to continue her academic and athletic career at Kirkwood Community College, announcing her decision on social media.
“I am so very blessed and so very excited to announce my commitment to continue my academic and athletic career at Kirkwood Community College,” Hickenbottom wrote. “Being a collegiate softball player has been a dream of mine since I started playing and now that dream is reality.”
She opened by crediting her faith. “First and foremost, all glory to God for always guiding me and being my light in the darkness. I may not have always known the path, but he does.”
Hickenbottom went on to thank her parents for their unwavering support throughout her career. “Every tournament, practice, lesson, and mile they were there and I couldn’t be more thankful.” She also expressed gratitude to the Cardinal softball community. “To my coaches, teammates, travel teams, and the Cardinal softball family, thank you all for pushing me day in and day out to be a better player, teammate, and overall person. Thank you for reminding me that this is a game, thank you for making me love this sport, and thank you for being the best community.”
She closed by thanking her future coaches. “Last but not least, I want to give all of my thanks to Coach Frese and Coach Crees for this opportunity. I am so excited for this next chapter, and couldn’t be more thrilled to call myself an Eagle.”
Hickenbottom was one of the standout players in Cardinal’s historic 2026 season, which saw first-year head coach Hannah Simpson lead the Comets to the state tournament for the first time since 2005. Hickenbottom earned First Team All-Conference and All-District honors after a dominant year in the circle and at the plate. Her pitching numbers through the regular season and postseason — not including the final two games of the state tournament — were remarkable: a 16-7 record with two saves, 152.1 innings pitched, 239 strikeouts, a 2.34 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP, and a .196 batting average against. At the plate, she hit .351 with a .435 on-base percentage, .527 slugging percentage, and .962 OPS, recording 26 hits, 11 runs, and 16 RBIs.
As Ottumwa Radio previously reported, Hickenbottom was a key figure in Cardinal’s Cinderella postseason run, which included upsets of the No. 13, No. 5, and No. 1 ranked teams in Class 2A. She threw complete games in all three regional victories, including a dominant shutout against 13th-ranked Pleasantville in which she struck out 12 batters, and delivered both in the circle and at the plate in the upset of top-seeded Interstate 35 in the regional final.
Head coach Hannah Simpson said the commitment is a reflection of the work Hickenbottom has put in throughout her career. “I’m extremely proud of Maclain and everything she has accomplished, and I’m excited to see her take this next step in her softball career,” Simpson said. “Maclain is the type of player every coach wants in their program. She is incredibly competitive, works hard every single day, and is always willing to put in the extra work to make herself and the people around her better. She has grown tremendously as a player, but what stands out to me most is the kind of teammate and person she is. She leads by example, competes with a lot of confidence, and genuinely cares about her teammates and the success of the team.”
Simpson said watching Hickenbottom develop over the course of her high school career has been special. “Watching her develop throughout her high school career and seeing her earn the opportunity to continue playing at Kirkwood has been really special. She has put in a lot of work to get to this point, and she has earned this opportunity.” Simpson also expressed confidence in what Hickenbottom will bring to the Eagles. “I truly believe Kirkwood is getting an outstanding player and an even better person. Maclain has the work ethic, toughness, and determination to make a big impact at the next level. I’m so excited for her and can’t wait to see what she accomplishes at Kirkwood. I know she’s going to represent herself, her family, and our program extremely well.”
Hickenbottom is joining a program that just completed one of the most successful seasons in its history. Kirkwood finished the 2026 season with a program-record 60 wins, going 60-7 overall and entering the NJCAA Division II Softball World Series in Spartanburg, South Carolina as the overall No. 1 seed. The Eagles battled through one of the toughest fields in the country before finishing as one of the top six teams in the nation — a historic run that set a new standard for the program.
Hickenbottom is set to play her senior season at Cardinal in 2027 before heading to Kirkwood, giving the Comets a strong foundation to build on as Simpson looks to take the program to the next level.
