By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – If life, according to the Biblical text, is a vapor that vanishes, youth is a lightning strike, a flash in the dark that illuminates the world before disappearing as a memory. Sports is the prime example. The mind might still be willing, but the flesh weakens rapidly.
Want a hindsight stock tip? Should have gobbled up shares of Johnson & Johnson, the makers of Bengay, prior to the Alumni Night softball celebration at Bedford North Lawrence on Wednesday evening. There’s going to be sore muscles, awakened from dormant slumber for the game in sweltering heat, that require hydration and healing before returning to hibernation.
Even the recent graduates were reminded of time’s tax on ability. So imagine how the ladies with “experience” – the term used by former All-State star Jenny (Mitchell) Spencer – feel now. They’re busy chasing kids and careers, not fly balls in the outfield gap.
But that’s why they came back, some from great distance. Not to relive glory, but to reconnect and reminisce. BNL softball has come a long way, baby.
For the record, the Red squad won the seven-inning contest, with more laughs than sparkling plays, with an occasional and accidental dive on the turf. For the record, Sarah Stone reprised her power game to win the Home Run Derby. All that was overshadowed by the reunion, with all the decades presented in the 42-year history of a program that started without a home.
When original coach Jo Underwood fielded the first BNL team, the Stars played at Otis Park. That meant teenagers were driving to practice every day, or to the park for home games. What could possibly go wrong? Then when the school finally made room for a softball field on the property, it was a hardscrabble venue at best.
“It was in such bad shape,” Underwood recalled. “We threw rocks off the field every day to make it playable. And when it rained, it was like a river, with ruts in the infield.” Look at it now, the turfed complex that is the envy of most rivals. Underwood, a 1977 BNL grad, could not have imagined this when she was given the task of coaching the first team in 1984. In fact, her first worry was teaching someone how to pitch. The underhand whipping motion to fire a fast-pitch laser was foreign to her.
Former BNL athletic director Ray Manis had no sympathy. “You better learn,” he growled. Gave her a dozen balls that had to last the year. “Most of them weren’t round at the end,” Underwood laughed.
They’ve definitely, defiantly, come a long way. From that launch, BNL has won 628 games, including 14 sectionals and three regionals. The program has produced 14 All-State players, starting with Kim Duncan in 1988 through Ava Ratliff, the state record holder for career home runs. Half of those were in attendance for this reunion.
“It’s more than wins and losses,” said current coach Brad Gilbert, the driving force behind the recent improvements to facilities and success. “We’ve tried to create a family atmosphere. Once you’re a Star, always a Star. It’s a cliche, but it’s the truth. We had so many players come out.”
They came back. Spencer made the journey from Tampa. She was uprooted and landed at BNL during the middle of her freshman year. She found her niche, and lifetime friends, in the softball program. She became an All-State catcher who later played four years at Indiana University. Mindy (Haskett) Kantz, her battery mate and inseparable friend, later pitched for the University of Indianapolis. When they heard about this gathering, they had to come.
“We had to do this,” Spencer said. “Life is too short. This became my family. They made me feel so welcome. We’re still friends to this day. It doesn’t matter how far we went, we had so much fun.”
“I had such a great upbringing in Bedford, wonderful coaches and family,” said Kantz, whose picture still graces the hallway wall near the athletic office. “Instead of playing ball, I’m watching my kids play ball. Now I feel really old.”
All the decades were accounted for on the game rosters. Heidi Willams from 1995, Rikki Crane from ‘98, Amber Chastain from 2003, Whitney Carroll (class of 2010), Olivia Hudson (2016), and quite a collection from the post-Covid years. Some have gone on to coach, others have already had daughters make their mark with the program. And there are more generations on the way.
“This is about the past, but it’s also about the future,” Gilbert said. “There are things that need to be done to help the next generation.”
That’s the real story of the program – the timeline and the journey. From Otis Park (which no longer includes a softball field, replaced by soccer), to the dirt and noticeable uphill grade in center field on the first diamond at BNL, to the beauty of the current setting. From Underwood to Gilbert, who has coached 25 of those 42 seasons.
“This is amazing,” Kantz said. “We thought we had it all when we were that age. And then we look at this. It’s pretty cool.”
Softball has been the highway to greater things for so many. The number of athletes who have gone to the next level is growing constantly. All they have to do is turn off the electronic devices and invest a little sweat equity. “It’s life changing for some,” Underwood said. “Kim Duncan talked to me recently and thanked me. She had no intention of going to college, ended up at IUPUI, now she’s a teacher and realtor.” There are many similar stories.
What will the next 42 years bring? That’s the wonder of it all. The changes in the first 42 were unpredictable, but for the vision of a few.
“There are a lot of people to thank,” Gilbert said. “I was really excited to see (former AD) Mike Short. Any time I went in his office and said we needed to do something, he said ‘Let’s do it.’ He never told me no. He was huge to get us away from Otis, then Jeff Callahan helped get this turfed. For everyone who thought it was a negative thing, it turned out to be a positive.
“I hope, when someone thinks about BNL softball, it’s positive. I hope it’s good memories. It’s incredible, from where we started to where we are, we’re lucky to have it.”
And they are lucky to have each other.
