“Good People”: Sarah Grunert Sobieszczanski Remains Close to Hillsdale Classmates
Written by Doug Goodnough
Hillsdale College is just “good people.” That’s the impression Sarah Grunert Sobieszczanski, ’16, formed of her alma mater after completing her degree in exercise science as a member of the Chargers softball team.
The former four-time all-conference performer (twice honorable mention, twice second team) said her Hillsdale experience has not stopped since graduating. Her husband, Tad, ’16, is a former baseball standout for the Chargers. And a strong group of baseball and softball teammates get together often at their home in Whitehouse, Ohio.
“That’s our weekends,” she said. “They all have kids, so it’s a great time. I bought extra beds so that everyone can stay, and it’s just a fun time. We get together probably once every two months.”
Sobieszczanski was a standout high school player in the Columbus, Ohio, area, when she learned of Hillsdale through one of her travel softball teammates. She said then-head coach Joe Abraham started the recruitment process, and after the campus visit, she was sold.
“I just loved the campus and the community,” she said. “That was really it.”
She said the team camaraderie was great, especially later in her career.
“My junior and senior year, we got super close,” Sobieszczanski said. “It taught me a lot and it carried into my future career.”
She was a pitcher and first baseman in high school and took on some pitching duties for the Chargers when necessary. However, when the coaches asked her to move to shortstop due to some injuries, she said she found her favorite position.
“I had not really played short before that, but we needed someone, so I filled that role,” Sobieszczanski said. “I loved it. Pitching was very stressful at times, so the infield was like my outlet. I love shortstop, because you are in the action all the time, and you get to be more of a leader on the field. I really enjoyed that role.”
Hillsdale qualified for the GLIAC Tournament in 2015 and 2016, with the Chargers finishing with a 26-12 record in Sobieszczanski’s senior season, including a stellar 19-7 in conference play.
After graduation, she completed her schooling in physical therapy. As a wife and also a mother to a four-year-old daughter and year-and-a-half-old son, she recently transitioned to a part-time position as a physical therapist at an outpatient clinic in the Toledo area.
The Sobieszczanskis enjoy coming back to campus for events like Homecoming, and they recently attended a Toledo alumni chapter event. She said Hillsdale remains a special place.
“I try to describe the place, and it’s so hard, because people don’t get it unless you go there,” Sobieszczanski said. “What is Hillsdale like? People open the doors for you. They say ‘hi.’ You can leave your stuff out on a table, and you’re not worried about people taking it. Like I said, it’s just good people.”
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s senior director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.
Published in January 2025