Growing up in a family of athletes, Liberty University’s junior outfielder Paige Doerr was destined to fall in love with sports. With a mom and sisters passionate about softball, it was only a matter of time before Doerr found her knack with the sport.
“My earliest memories are us just playing around with a ball, playing catch,” Doerr said.
Doerr’s mother, Melissa Dorman, was a catcher for the University of Oregon from 1999-2001. Doerr’s older sister, Abby Doerr, followed in her mother’s footsteps and was a catcher for the University of Alabama and Oregon State University.
“I became my older sister’s bat girl, my mom was the coach and I was always too small to play,” Doerr said. “She would always put me in the outfield to shag in their practices because she didn’t want me to get hurt. I feel like that is when the love for the sport began.”
Doerr noted how competing with her siblings helped grow her love of the sport.
“Absolutely everything becomes a competition,” Doerr said. “We’ll do something so silly, and they’ll be like, ‘oh, 1-0.’”
Doerr began her collegiate career close to home on the Oregon State Lady Beavers Softball team. Doerr claimed many accolades in her first year, including being placed on the 2024 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team. She finished her freshman season with one home run, six RBIs, 10 runs and a .235 batting average.
Doerr made the decision to join the Lady Flames for her sophomore season. Being on a new team paralleled how she felt as a freshman with her last team.
“When I played for Oregon State, my family lived in Corvallis,” Doerr said. “I literally lived in my own bed in my own home.”
Doerr credited Liberty for making the transition so easy.
“There were always multiple people picking me up or inviting me to do stuff … it was very welcoming,” Doerr said. “I really needed that because it was my new home away from home.”
Despite the uniqueness of the opportunity, the transition was still difficult. Doerr pointed to the coaching staff at Liberty for helping her get acclimated to the team.
“Having the people that support me from home and having the people that support me here, now my process has a lot of conviction in it,” Doerr said. “To do things with conviction is … what really has taken me a step further.”
Doerr noted how playing with conviction has led her to become an intentional player as well. Looking back at her 2025 Conference USA Championship season, Doerr credited her success to those around her.
Former Liberty softball players KK Madrey and Rachel Roupe played a pivotal role in guiding Doerr during her first season.
“KK and Roupe truly taught me everything; they truly picked me up and took me under their wing,” Doerr said. “I would literally just follow them around and be like ‘oh, okay, this is how I need to do this’ … they’re phenomenal, and they’re great and why would you not want to be just like them?”
Having two older mentors kept Doerr from overthinking and helped her focus. They inspired her to be a mentor for new players stepping onto the field.
“This year my goal is to be that for someone else,” Doerr said. “To be their support for them.”
Looking forward, Doerr is excited to spend next season with her younger sister, Parker, who will be joining the Lady Flames for her first year on campus. Doerr hopes to use the lessons she learned from her older sister and the players before her, to guide her younger sibling as she steps into Liberty’s softball program.
“I’m really excited for Parker and to watch her thrive and grow,” Doerr said. “To love this place like I do, because it’s such a great place and so welcoming.”
Lewis is a sports reporter for the Liberty Champion.