BY DAN STICKRADT
CORRESPONDENT
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
MASON — Everything about Autumn Kissman is old school.
She plays basketball.
She plays volleyball.
And she plays softball.
Oh, by the way, she is very good, too.
All of this while maintaining a stellar 3.8 grade-point average and gaining some scholarship offers over the past couple of years in both softball and basketball.
Kissman, a mobile 6-foot-2 athlete from Mason High School, will play basketball in college at Division I Oakland University — she committed during her sophomore year and will sign her national letter-of-intent in November — and is the midst of her senior year where she has big plans for her and the Bulldogs.
“I think about it a lot,” said Kissman of leading her teams deep into the postseason.
Playing three sports presents plenty of challenges, but she has note than learned time management all while going through the recruiting process and remain in the top 25 of her graduating class.
“I don’t have a lot of free time,” she said a matter-of-factly “When I’m not playing (sports), I’m usually doing homework or just hanging out with friends.”
That’s okay with Kissman, who also plays softball part-time with the Lansing Patriots in the summer months. She is often busy working out with private trainers instead of traveling around the AAU circuit.
“I love playing sports,” she said. “I’ve always loved softball and basketball, but basketball is my favorite. I didn’t play volleyball in ninth or 10th grade, but I had an injury my sophomore year and I came out for volleyball my junior year as kind of a recovery sport. They needed some (size) and I felt I could help out and get in shape, too.”
In an era where student-athletes are sadly being forced into the specialization route, the Mason star has defied the odds in multiple ways. She has excelled on the playing surface as the Class A Bulldogs’ best athlete in all three sports.
“It just feels right to be playing, staying competitive,” said Kissman. “When I’m not playing, I work out a lot to try to improve my game.”
In volleyball, Mason finished second in the CAAC Red Division this fall and hopes to win its first district in several years in November.
In basketball, Kissman and the Bulldogs have plans to compete for league and district titles — and perhaps more this winter. Mason has not won a district in 17 years on the hardcourt.
On the softball diamond, Kissman also hopes to lead Mason to plenty of championship success next spring.
Kissman, who will graduate with 10 varsity letters (four each in basketball and softball and two in volleyball) has put up the stats to garner plenty of attention
She leads her volleyball team in kills, blocks and kill percentage and will likely gain plenty of postseason honors when those are released in November and December.
On the basketball court, she averaged 17.7 points as a junior in league games and 19.6 points overall to lead the mid-Michigan area in scoring. She set a single-game school record for blocks (5) last season, averaged 10.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks a contest, shot .550 from the floor, registered 15 double-doubles and also had a career-best 31 points in an outing against Okemos.
The post player was All-CAAC Red Division, All-Region, All-Lansing Area Dream Team and Associated Press Class A All-State First Team amongst numerous postseason accolades.
Through three seasons, she has totaled 806 points, 549 rebounds and 141 blocks and ranks amongst the all-time leaders in school history in multiple categories with one season to play.
On the softball diamond, she hit .350 her freshman year, but a torn meniscus her sophomore year left her in the dugout recording stats.
The versatile pitcher/first baseman/second baseman came back as a junior in major way, hitting .560 with four home runs, 50 RBI and no errors defensively held her earn All-CAAC Red Division, All-Lansing Area Division 2 First Team and All-Region.
Like many relatives before her, the youngest Kissman will play college basketball — her first love.
Her grandfather, Jerry Kissman, is a hall of fame honoree at Division II University of Wisconsin-Stout. Her father, Tim Kissman, starred at Eaton Rapids and is the career second-leading scorer at Hillsdale College. Kissman’s uncle, Mike Kissman, also was a basketball standout at Michigan Tech.
Autumn Kissman had previously gained interest in basketball from Butler, Princeton and several Division II and Division III schools. Davenport and a host of others have scouted her in softball as well.
“I just knew when I visited (Oakland) the first time that I loved the place,” said Kissman. “I loved the coaching staff, loved the campus. I just had that feeling that this was where I wanted to play in college. I don’t have to worry about it (as a senior).
“It’s really cool because I’ve had others in my family that played college basketball,” said Kissman. “My dad, my grandpa, my uncle — they all played hoops in college. I just love the sport and I’m glad to be carrying on the family tradition.”
With the scholarship in tow and multiple school records etched in Mason’s record books, the old-school three-sport athlete hopes to add some thrilling chapters as her high school athletics career ventures through her senior campaign.
“I want to help my team win — go far in the state tournament. In every sport, we really want to go as far as we can,” she said. “We’ve had good teams, but haven’t gone really far. We hope to do that this year.”