By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – The advertising line from the 1960s was iconic, and still resonates. “You’ve come a long way, baby.” Decades later, the underlying meaning of the phrase points to progress, a movement from humble beginnings to a high-level standard of excellence. That perfectly captures the essence of Bedford North Lawrence softball.
From hardscrabble to elite, BNL has risen from the dust to top-drawer success. It all started in 1984, when coach Jo Underwood took the first team over to Otis Park to practice on a diamond that no longer exists. But her legacy sure does.
BNL honored Underwood, the program founder who threw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to a clash with Jeffersonville, with a victory, conquering the Red Devils 10-4 on Wednesday. Kendall Graves drove in five runs as the Stars (17-9 overall, 3-3 in the Hoosier Hills Conference) ran the Devils into the turf with eight stolen bases.
Could Underwood have imagined all this back then? It’s doubtful. Her main worry was getting rid of the rocks on the dirt infield. She paved the way for the future, winning 133 games in 11 seasons (including six sectional titles) and helped a young first-year coach survive the pitfalls and problems.
“When I was a first-year coach, I got thrown into it,” BNL coach Brad Gilbert said. “She was right there to talk, wanted to know how things were going. She talked me through some stuff. It’s pretty cool, that 42 years ago, she started it. Now look what we have.
“I hope she knows how much she means to me. I know what it takes to coach, how stressful it is, how much you have to fight for things. She has to be in awe of what she started. She built this, she battled.“
This win was like so many before it, and the Stars have won more than their share in the 1,022 games since the program inception. BNL trailed 3-1, then scored five runs in the third to take control. Graves had a two-run double during that rally, and Karsyn Coleman dropped down a squeeze bunt to plate another.
“I thought it was a total team win,” Gilbert said. “We did what we needed. We bunted some runs in, and that was huge. With a runner on third and less than two outs, we have to score that run, whatever it takes. Some kids were very selfless, and it was exciting to see.”
Graves had two hits, both doubles, to collect her five RBIs. During the last eight games, she has been on fire, totaling 24 RBIs in that span. She had only 9 in the previous 18 games.
“It’s crazy, when you look at her stats, with home runs and RBIs, and a lot of hits,” Gilbert said. “She’s playing well.”
Tori Nikirk also had two hits, and she swiped three bases while scoring three times.
“I was proud of our hitting,” Gilbert said. “They threw three different pitchers, with different speeds, and sometimes it takes a lot to get adjusted. But we didn’t miss a beat.”
Macee Nicholson earned the win in the circle, working four innings while allowing only one earned run. Coleman came on in relief and gave up only one hit in three frames.
”That’s a great one-two punch,” Gilbert said.
Ally Young and Kenzie Myers had two hits each for the Red Devils (1-13, 0-3).
BNL will host Jasper, and celebrate its Senior Day, on Thursday.
