Paulsen signs to play baseball at Springfield university

Multi-sport athlete Brendyn Paulsen, a senior at Southwest High School, narrowed his future focus on Friday, signing to play baseball at the next level with Mission University in Springfield.

Paulsen, who is in the midst of district tournament basketball this week and has his senior season of baseball just around the corner, said putting his name down was a dream come true.

“It felt really professional,” he said. “It’s always been my dream to sign with a college for baseball, and I was tickled to death because it’s what I always wanted. It felt really cool and surreal.”

Paulsen landed on Mission’s radar over a year ago, attending a prospect camp in the fall of his junior year.

“Their recruiter kept up with me since then, and I’ve known it’s always been an option,” he said. “I just wanted to get it done.”

While he enjoys basketball, Paulsen said baseball has always had his heart in the long run.

“I’ve always enjoyed baseball more with my family, and I love the team aspect,” he said. “My favorite memories are definitely all the teammates I got to meet and teams I got to be part of. It seemed like every year new guys were called up, and it was like a different team every time. I loved being part of each of those teams.”

Paulsen also has enjoyed plenty of success at Southwest, especially on the mound and at the plate.

“My favorite game was I threw six innings and had two outs and a no-hitter, but I ran out of pitches,” he said. “I also hit the last home run on the old baseball field in my sophomore year, then hit the first new one on the new field my junior year.”

That moment was especially unique for Paulsen, as his father, Jesse Paulsen, hit the first home run on the old field when he attended Southwest.

Looking forward into a new era of his career, Paulsen said he’s excited to see the level of play increase.

“I’m ready for all the competition and want to push my hardest,” he said. “I know I’m going to be the best I am going to be at Mission if I push myself.”

Paulsen plans to major in business.