From Farm To Field: Kaylee Heberer Shows Her Work

Kaylee Heberer Kaylee Heberer SS Markesan | 2027 #81 Nation WI knows the value of hard work and responsibility. She gets up early every day before school to do chores and care for her pigs.

Heberer has a family farm in Markesan, Wisconsin with 125 acres of land. The 2027 recruit shows animals at the county and state fairs each year. Heberer shows pigs, heifers, and steers at the county fair and just pigs at the state fair.

She won the showmanship and herdsmanship awards at the county fair, and sold her pig for $3,000 this year.

“When you start at a young age, you almost get attached to it, getting new animals every year. You kind of have a personality through it,” Heberer said. "I just love working hard, and being up for the sunrise every day is pretty, pretty fun. I love getting up early and just everything about it's amazing.”

Heberer, who recently committed to Northwestern, got interested in softball because of her father, who played slow pitch until just a few years ago. Her great uncle, Jim Gantner, played professional baseball for the Milwaukee Braves.

Heberer started out as a pitcher but then moved to the middle infield, which has been her primary position for the past six years. She also played volleyball and basketball until stopping this year so she could focus more on travel softball.

“Ever since I started playing travel ball, I always wanted to keep doing it. Even when I was doing practices, I'd still want to keep playing, keep practicing. I never wanted it to end,” said Heberer, who plays for Beverly Bandits 16 Conroy. "I think how much fun I have playing is why I truly love softball so much and want to make a career out of it. I think just starting from that young age and seeing how much I can grow throughout softball—that's why I love it so much.”

Given her upbringing in Markesan, which has a population of around 1,400 and hosts annual Dairy Days and Farmer's Free Corn Roast festivities, Heberer loves being out in nature.

“I really like the outdoors a lot. I hunt all the time, and fish a lot,” she said. "I just really enjoy doing things that are outside as much as I can.”

Heberer is currently taking care of two more pigs for jackpot shows. She will be able to show animals for one more year after she graduates high school before she ages out of competitions.

At Northwestern, she plans to study marketing while playing for the Wildcats and blaze a different path from her agricultural roots.

“It's kind of away from what I've always grown up dreaming about. I wanted to be a vet,” she said. "But I think from working on a farm my whole life, I kind of want to get away from it a little bit after college and see what else is out there.”