{"id":226055,"date":"2025-05-01T10:34:54","date_gmt":"2025-05-01T14:34:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/?p=226055"},"modified":"2025-05-12T16:21:29","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T20:21:29","slug":"bloomfield-college-student-athlete-daniela-vidal-turns-softball-scholarship-into-a-life-of-purpose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/2025\/05\/01\/bloomfield-college-student-athlete-daniela-vidal-turns-softball-scholarship-into-a-life-of-purpose\/","title":{"rendered":"Bloomfield College Student-Athlete Daniela Vidal Turns Softball Scholarship Into a Life of Purpose"},"content":{"rendered":"

This story is part of a series celebrating Montclair State University\u2019s Spring Commencement 2025 graduates \u2013 students who embody the University\u2019s mission to broaden access to exceptional learning opportunities and contribute to the common good.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

For Daniela Vidal, softball isn\u2019t just a game. Driven and tenacious, she credits the sport with teaching her grit \u2013 the mindset that defines her approach to life.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf it didn’t happen the first time, keep on going until it happens,\u201d says Vidal. \u201cI’m 100% sure I got that from softball.\u201d<\/p>\n

And if there is any word that describes her, grit is it. As a McNair Scholar<\/a>, student-athlete, peer mentor and team captain, Vidal faced the responsibilities and pressures of college life with resilience and gratitude.<\/p>\n

But that worldview wasn\u2019t softball\u2019s only gift.<\/p>\n

\u201cSoftball\u2019s the reason why I came to college,\u201d says Vidal, who enrolled in Bloomfield College of Montclair State University in 2021 with an athletic scholarship. \u201cI didn\u2019t have to pay much to come to college. And that\u2019s a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Learning to Lead: Lessons On and Off the Field<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Raised with an early affinity for numbers, choosing Business Administration as a major felt like a natural fit.<\/p>\n

\u201cEver since I was smaller, I saw my grandpa crunching numbers with his calculator,\u201d Vidal recalls. \u201cI was just fascinated with numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n

But balancing her coursework with the demands of being a student-athlete was far from easy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was late to practice all the time,\u201d she remembers. \u201cLate to school. Late to everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when Vidal found her first of many mentors: Phil Delgado, her former softball coach whose tough love got her back on track.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy coach actually pulled me aside and told me \u2018you just need to prioritize,\u2019\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n

Delgado\u2019s advice was a turning point. Vidal went on to achieve 100 hits as a junior and started every game throughout her college career \u2013 all while balancing two academic concentrations. Eventually, she led the Bloomfield softball team as a captain.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year I was telling the freshmen \u2013 from the jump, from the first day they came \u2013 don\u2019t be late. Learn from my experience,\u201d she says, laughing. \u201cI think it worked. Maybe I spread some fear.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her journey on the field taught her discipline \u2013 but it was off the field where she discovered how much she loved helping others grow, too.<\/p>\n

Being a team captain also taught Vidal an unexpected life lesson when \u2013 <\/span>not<\/span><\/em> to speak. “<\/span>Sometimes as a captain you\u2019re like, \u2018Yeah, I have to be the first one to say this,\u2019 but it\u2019s not always that. You need to be able to listen to everyone else.\u201d (Photo courtesy of Daniela Vidal)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

McNair Scholars: Expanding Her Horizons<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Her sophomore year, Vidal received an email from the McNair Scholars Program<\/a> and at first dismissed it as a scam. But a conversation with Bloomfield\u2019s McNair Scholars program director, Beverly Fields, changed everything.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never knew a PhD was for me,\u201d Vidal admits. \u201cAs soon as I heard, \u2018We\u2019ll help you on your PhD journey,\u2019 I was like, wait, this is a possibility? And I think this program is going to help me do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She applied immediately, and to her surprise, she was accepted.<\/p>\n

Under the mentorship of <\/span>Benjamin Silliman<\/span> of St. John\u2019s University, Daniela Vidal researched the Implications of Earned Income Tax Credit, focusing on<\/span> its impact on cost of living<\/span>. In April, she presented her research at the 2025 Metro NY\/NJ McNair Conference & Graduate School Fair hosted at CUNY-John Jay College. (Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mentorship That Mattered \u2013 In and Out of the Classroom<\/strong><\/h2>\n

While the McNair Program gave Vidal the tools to thrive academically, some of her most meaningful support came from unexpected places.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy boyfriend, Anibal, was my biggest support. He kept it real,\u201d she says. \u201cHe\u2019d say, \u2018Study for it or you\u2019re going to fail.\u2019 I needed that.\u201d He also coached her through job interviews, asking her hard questions and helping her prepare.<\/p>\n

Vidal credits her growth to the tough love of the people who believed in her \u2013 from her softball coaches to her McNair mentors \u2013 and who pushed her to believe in herself.<\/p>\n

On May 8, 2025, she will earn a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with two concentrations \u2013 Marketing and Finance.<\/p>\n

On her mortarboard, she\u2019ll wear a picture of herself and her grandfather with the words, \u201cGracias a lo que sembraste, hoy me graduo con honor.\u201d<\/p>\n

In other words, thanks to what you planted in me, with honor today I graduate.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a tribute to the grandfather who instilled in her both a love of numbers and the grit she needed to succeed.<\/p>\n

Daniela Vidal is also grateful for the friends who were \u201cin the trenches\u201d of Bloomfield with her \u2013 like Kate, a high school acquaintance who became her best friend, and Reyna, who quickly became one of the most impactful people she met at Bloomfield.<\/span> (Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What\u2019s Next: Merging Finance and Criminal Justice<\/strong><\/h2>\n

After graduation, Vidal will begin working full time at BNY Pershing<\/a>, the division of BNY Mellon where she interned in the summer of 2024.<\/p>\n

But her educational journey isn\u2019t over. Her next goal is to combine her passion for finance with her budding interest in law.<\/p>\n

After being accepted to more than six graduate programs, she chose the University of New Haven\u2019s Cyber Threat Intelligence and Financial Crimes Investigations<\/a> online master\u2019s program\u00a0 \u2013 the only one of its kind in the United States.<\/p>\n

And yes, a PhD is on the horizon.<\/p>\n

Inspired by her own experience, Vidal hopes to one day coach girls in softball \u2013 passing down the confidence, discipline and grit the sport gave her.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause sports did such a big thing in my life. I want to give back, you know?\u201d she says. \u201cWhatever way it may be, I just want to give back somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n

The University will<\/em> celebrate its graduates at Commencement<\/em><\/a> exercises on Wednesday, May 7 and Thursday, May 8, 2025 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Story by <\/em>Jayda Brown<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>University Communications and Marketing<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Ready to Start Your Bloomfield Journey?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Prospective Students or Parents:<\/em><\/strong> Learn more about <\/em>Bloomfield College of Montclair State University<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Journalists:<\/em><\/strong> Contact our <\/em>Media Relations<\/em><\/strong><\/a> team to request assets or schedule an interview with a member of the Class of 2025.<\/em><\/p>\n

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A Passion for Helping Others<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Vidal\u2019s passion for helping others sparked in 2022, when she worked as a counselor at the Boys & Girls Club<\/a>. She loved taking the kids outside for games \u2013 often getting so caught up in a game of wiffleball that they\u2019d run past their scheduled time.<\/p>\n

Through this experience, she realized that she loved being a positive influence on the kids.<\/p>\n

That desire to help others led to her peer financial consulting role \u2013 using her gift for numbers to help fellow students overcome their fear of managing money.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people are scared of their finances \u2013 scared of losing power over their finances,\u201d says Vidal. \u201cI wanted to let people know that it\u2019s a common fear. It\u2019s not only you.\u201d<\/p>\n