A Herriman, Utah, native, outfielder Lauren Tycksen transferred to UNLV last semester and has made an immediate impact, leading the team in batting average, hits and runs scored to help the Rebels to a scorching-hot start at 19-5. However, Tycksen's road of competition has been a bumpy one at times as she battled a torn ACL in high school and thyroid cancer just a year ago. After her diagnosis, Tycksen went on to have an All-American season at Salt Lake Community College. Now in remission, Tycksen reflects on her journey so far and how she made her way to UNLV -- in her own words:
 
iREBEL by Lauren Tycksen
 
I started playing softball when I was eight years old. I have a twin brother and when he started playing baseball I wanted to play, too. My dad was my coach and he introduced me to softball and I've been playing ever since. I love it because me and my dad have always been super close through the sport and it's allowed our relationship to grow. I also love it because I can be a positive influence on little girls like my 10-year-old sister. She plays now and loves coming to games and watching me.
 
Coming out of high school, I was supposed to go to Weber State University, but I tore my ACL during my senior season and they ended up pulling my scholarship offer. My hitting coach at the time was the assistant coach at SLCC and they contacted me and ended up giving me an opportunity to play. My experience there was awesome, I loved that team and we had so much fun playing together.
 
My assistant coach at SLCC, Tara Bendt, played at UNLV and she's the one who introduced me to the school and the atmosphere here. She also played two years at SLCC and then transferred here, so our paths were pretty similar. She got me in touch with Coach (Kristie) Fox and I took a visit and ended up really loving it here.
 
Over winter break a year ago, I went to the doctor and he noticed that my throat looked enlarged, so I had to go get an ultrasound. The results came back and I had a mass in my throat, so I had to go get a biopsy to find out what it was. When the biopsy came back it was malignant and it was papillary carcinoma. It was stage 2 thyroid cancer because of how big the mass was in my throat -- it was about the size of a baseball. It was shocking. You never think someone is going to tell you that you have cancer. It was unreal and just hard to believe. I was definitely scared. I got it removed in February of last year with a total thyroidectomy. It was about a two-week recovery from the surgery and I ended up being able to play that season at SLCC. Over the summer I had to go back for a check-up and my levels were still high, so I underwent radiation this summer. The levels keep going down and now I just have to go back to check-ups whenever I go home to make sure they stay down, so it's definitely good news for now.
 
I was definitely scared that I was going to lose all my strength. The thyroid controls your hormones, so I was scared I was going to be too tired to play and that it just wasn't going to be the same. I think the experience has put everything in perspective. It could have easily been taken away from me. I really had the best scenario of a bad situation, because it was a kind of cancer that is very treatable, but the whole thing has taught me to take every day as a blessing and push myself to be the best that I can.
 
My family has been a big support system for me. The ACL injury was actually a lot harder to come back from physically. That experience was very frustrating because you lose all your muscle and the rehab is long and painful. But just having my family and friends supporting me, and a lot of coaches along the way, created a great support system has helped me get through it.
 
Everything happens for a reason. I'm really glad for everything that's happened to me because it's taught me a lot of life lessons and it's got me where I am today. I couldn't be happier that this where I ended up.
 
I really love it here. I love the environment and all the girls on the team and Coach Fox is awesome. I definitely made the right choice. I didn't think that I was going to do as well as I have, but there's always room for improvement and I'm pushing myself to get better. I'm really excited to see where the season goes. My goal for the team is to win the Mountain West and to make it to NCAA regionals.
 
UNLV hosts No. 24 Boise State this weekend in a key Mountain West series. Game times are 6 p.m. on Friday, 4 p.m. on Saturday and 12 p.m. on Sunday. For tickets, visit UNLVTickets.