BYU Softball’s Lauren Flanders: The art of being ‘where your feet are’

“Alright, Cougs, three up, three down!” shouts third baseman Keila Kamoku, as the team takes the field.

Teammate Lauren Flanders takes her position in the outfield. As he waits for the first batter to come to the plate, he looks down and runs his finger along the seams of his glove. It says, “Be where your feet are.”

This idea, being where your feet are, is how Flan (as Lauren is affectionately called by her teammates) lives her life. She is an NCAA softball player, STEM major, ROTC reservist, and future pilot.

The quote serves as a reminder to take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way and keep your focus on the moment you are in.

When she was a child, Flan’s father, who is a pilot, took her flying for the first time and she “just fell in love with everything.” He decided to add flying to his impressive arsenal of passions.

Flan has to schedule flight times at the Provo airport between practices. Sometimes he leaves practice early, does his flight training, and then comes back to finish practice.

But when he arrived at BYU, he discovered a love he didn’t expect; computer engineering. He came to campus intending to study civil engineering, but took a computer engineering class on a whim, discovered his passion, and decided to change majors.

“I always have to be busy,” she said. “I really enjoy my life when it’s full of things to do… even when it’s overwhelming and stressful. “I’d rather feel overwhelmed and stressed than bored.”

This past offseason, Flan said he spent his summer a little different than before. His summer consisted of a 9-to-5 systems engineering internship in Washington, DC, while adjusting training to mornings and afternoons. This was a big change of pace from her typical softball-focused schedule, but she was thriving.

“I was doing two things, so I really liked it,” he recalled.

Flan’s unparalleled work ethic and skills earned her a job offer after graduating in April. As soon as he finished his internship and returned to Provo, he returned to the cockpit to finish his flight training.

“I’d love to do as much as I can until I finally find a way to ‘this is what I feel like I should do’… I’ve been lucky, everything I’ve tried, I’ve loved.” she said.

As an aspiring pilot who thrives in a team environment and has three influential family members who are pilots, it’s no surprise that Flan was drawn to the US Air Force. He joined the BYU ROTC program here as a freshman and currently works as a reservist. He’s studying computer engineering and the Air Force, but she’ll commit to whichever comes first.

For now, however, her feet are planted in softball. The 2025 season begins on February 6 in La Jolla, California, against UC San Diego. In preparation, Flan spends his days doing exercises and lifting weights so he can “leave it all on the field” for his final season.

Last year, the Cougars joined the Big 12 and had a historic inaugural season. In April, the team traveled to Norman, Oklahoma, to face the University of Oklahoma Sooners. In the first game of the series, the Cougars fell to the Sooners 8-0, but Flan said at the hotel that night that the vibe changed, they “came out swinging the next day” and defeated the Sooners 9-4.

For those unfamiliar with NCAA softball, the University of Oklahoma softball team doesn’t lose very often. The Cougar victory was one of seven times the Sooners were defeated last season and was their first home loss since 2017.

To achieve that victory, the team had to be intentional in the second game. The Cougars had to come in with a clear head and confidence. They couldn’t let the fact that Oklahoma was seeking a four-time national championship that season get in their way. As a team, they had to stand where their feet were and they rose to the challenge.

As the season progressed after the OU series, Flan and the Cougars were able to use that victory as a jumping-off point to finish their inaugural season in sixth place in the Big 12, missing the postseason by just one spot.

Flan hopes to take on this season, finish her flight training, graduate and begin her career as a systems engineer or Air Force pilot, or perhaps both. To meet such demands, Flan has to meticulously calculate her life day by day, staying where her feet are.