Onalaska’s Lisa Liddell still has one more season of softball in Grit Town, but soon she’ll be taking the circle in the Valley of the Sun.

On Wednesday, Liddell made it official, signing her National Letter of Intent in front of family and friends to play collegiate softball at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona.

This past spring, Liddell led the Loggers to within a game of the state tournament, earning first-team All-C2BL honors for a stellar season on the mound.

Liddell also earned first-team honors in 2023, when she made The Chronicle’s All-Area softball team by striking out 152 batters while walking just 30 in 14 appearances as a sophomore.

Liddell first visited Arizona in August, and she said she fell in love with the campus and the coaching staff, even in the sweltering Phoenix summer heat.

GCU made the jump to Division I in 2013, and has since competed in the Western Athletic Conference. 

The Lopes are coming off their best season since moving up, as they went 50-13 on their way to a regional final against UCLA, a team that eventually made the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In 2025 or 2026, GCU will make the jump to the Mountain West Conference.

Liddell credited her travel coach Tate Myers for helping her through the recruiting process.

“It’s really intimidating to talk to college coaches,” Liddell said. “He knows a lot about that, so he was really helpful.”

While she is looking forward to her next chapter in Phoenix, Liddell added that she’s looking forward to the rest of her senior year and her final high school softball season.

“I’m gonna miss all of my teammates here,” Liddell said. “But I think I’m also gonna miss the teachers and the community here. I really love the community, and I’m gonna miss that tight-knit feeling.”