Forget walking, Texas leadoff hitter Lindsey Stephens has picked up her pace

— -- This is the time of year when most seniors look forward to walking across a commencement stage. The sooner someone hands them a diploma and a parent snaps photographic proof that they passed the right courses, the better.

Yet after four years of reading, writing, studying and sweating out exams along with the rest of her class at the University of Texas, Lindsey Stephens wants nothing to do with such traditions.

Forget walking. Her preferred pace for commencement weekend is a light jog with left turns at first, second and third bases.

"None of us want to walk," Stephens said of a five-player senior softball class. "Because if you're walking that means you're not playing in regionals."