For many softball players in the 5th Region, the news that the 2020 high school season was about to be cancelled for the first time was a bitter pill. After practicing and preparing for an anxious offseason, the waiting and final decision was a hard one to take for most athletes in all spring sports. The seniors felt the biggest blow when they suddenly realized that the last time they played wearing their high school uniform may have been either in a scrimmage just before the shutdown or the their last game in May or early June 2019.
Thankfully, that wasn’t entirely the case.
Wednesday evening, the Bethlehem Banshee’s new softball complex located at the school’s Athletic Complex hosted their first official softball game which was composed of Graduated Seniors Only from the 5th Region area. It was an idea that came to reality last Wednesday evening and it it could be the start of something even bigger if this becomes a tradition. Bethlehem Softball coach Shaun Smith had mentioned the idea several months ago, but planned it at the new Softball Field in late July with the hope that restrictions had loosened up by then. Since the Banshees, the home team had their season cancelled what better place to play their first Senior Softball Game than there to help inaugurate the new field.
Upon arriving, it was very evident that this was going to be a little different as the senior players from different schools were clad in their school uniforms giving the game a true All-Star look and during the announcements before the game that almost every 5th Region school was represented by someone except a few. Also, the senior teams were split up into two teams with equal position players as well as pitchers and both coaching squads were composed of area region coaches as everyone was looking to have fun.
The Visiting Team had a familiar look with several North Hardin players like Jade Champion, who played short,Renee Holly out in center and Jirah Gray in left. Hart County had Katie Collins, who played first and pitched a couple innings. Serenity Haskins, who played in the outfield and Madison Ratliff, who found herself behind the plate. Green County’s lone senior Kiley McCubbins caught and made a great play tagging out a runner. Taylor County had five with Autumn Henderson, who pitched the first several innings of the game, Piper Rucker, who finished in relief, Reagan Mardis at second, Mackenzie Caulk at third and Lauren Barnes. Campbellsville’s Shallan Philpott at first and Nelson County’s Megan Curtsinger played short.
Central Hardin, the current defending five-time Region champs were represented by Shortstop Emily Bryant and catcher Bailey Richardson, who were on the home team. Bryant, who also played in the KY All-Star games at Versailles last Tuesday seemed right at home at short, while Richardson, who has been busy playing travel ball played well with a couple of singles and helped lead a comeback in the seventh inning.
Marion County’s Haley Mattingly looked great going the distance as the Home hurler allowing just four runs and her teammate Emily Helms played first base and made a great play trying to score upending the catcher on the Visiting team. Three Adair County seniors Carrie Smith, Gracie Huckaby and Maggie Young represented their school well.
And last, but not least six Bethlehem Banshees were in the pinstripes finally getting their dream of playing in their brand new ballpark. Carly Jones finally got to play in centerfield in her new home made a really great catch to stify a scoring threat late and singling. Claire Osborne was at second and used her slap hitting style to set up the tying run in the seventh. Savannah Beyerle and Makenna Ellis got playing time on the field and Mollie Ulrich got in the game. And of course there is Kennady Werner catching and playing third.
Considering most of the players had to deal with the long layoff and really didn’t play together as a team until game day, it was quite a contest and one that will be long remembered as both teams really slugged it out.
The Visiting team got on the board in the top of the first when Serenity Haskins and Autumn Henderson got on base and both scored by singles from Philpott and Ratliff off Mattingly. That was pretty much it for a while as both teams played great defense. The Home team did have a great chance to get on the board, but Emily Helms was called out on a play at home by catcher Kiley McCubbins. Mattingly got bit again in the top of the fourth when Renee Holly singled advanced to third and scored on a fielders choice to make it 3-0.
Henderson was breezing right along until the bottom of the fourth when Werner, who just missed a double down the left field line, took the Taylor County pitcher deep over he left field wall for a home run. Katie Collins came in and pitched two scoreless innings and it looked like a wash until the bottom of the seventh when Piper Rucker came in to pitch and Bailey Richardson started things off with a single and eventually scored on Carrie Smith’s single to make it 3-2 and then Smith eventually tied it up after adavnacing to second and then third scoring on Claire Osborne’s ground out.
Ready for a dramatic ending? The Visiting team responded when McCubbins walked and then eventually scored on Caulk’s rocket that went off Smith’s glove in rightfield to make it 4-3 going into the bottom of the eighth.
That’s when the things really got crazy when Ulrich reached first with a walk and up stepped Werner again. Rucker’s first pitch was sent airborne over the left field field in almost the same spot that her last home run did as the Home Team ended the suspense to a marvelous game played by two groups of excellent athletes.
In the first game ever played at the Banshees new ball park, could anyone have imagined such a game or finish and by one of the players who would have, should have played there several months ago? What was amazing was that every girl that attended the game and participated showed such excitement and raw emotion in a game and a season in which you just wish it could go a little longer.
Congrats to Shaun Smith, the 5th Region Coaches involved, the players, who missed the game so dearly that they gave us one last hurrah and the fans and parents who showed up at every game and did again for one last time to see these girls one more time. It really makes you realize what we could have been enjoying for the three months that softball and all spring sports were absent from our lives.
While the girls out there during batting practice in their school uniforms made me realize how fast it does go as so many of them are already waiting to begin their second lives whether professionally or at the next level. Both Bryant and Richardson are headed to college to play softball and Renee Holly is about to become a Marine and Werner and Carly Jones have their careers ready for softball and education at the next level.
Watching Autumn Henderson as she has this nervous habit of rubbing the softball against her jersey in between pitches or tiny Kiley McCubbins smile which can litterly shine right through her batting helmet or Katie Collins recognizable throwing motion or Bryant’s compact batting stance or Richardson down in her catching stance or Carly Jones smile which lights up the dugout are things that you associate with these marvelous players and for one last evening on a night that bad weather threatened throughout the week, but never came we got one final flashback at the period in time which is gone for good, but not forgotten.
