By Bruce Campbell

Staff Writer



Eighth-grader Kelsea Schultz created a little bit of a stir around Pond Creek-Hunter in the fall of 2002 when she told some of the high school players she would be the starting catcher for the Lady Panthers the next season as a freshman.

“Even her parents laughed,’’ said Pond Creek-Hunter coach Arnie Smith.

Schultz got the last laugh.

At 5-foot-5, she stood taller than anyone in northwest Oklahoma fast-pitch softball this fall, being voted by area coaches the Enid News & Eagle Player of the Year after hitting .400 and leading the Lady Panthers to a 25-10 record and the state tournament.

“It’s a huge honor,’’ said Schultz. “It’s pretty awesome that everybody thinks I should get something like this.’’

Schultz indeed was the starting catcher for the Lady Panthers as a freshman, helping to take Pond Creek-Hunter to the state tournament and earning All-State honors.

She improved every season, finishing her senior year with a .464 on-base average and a slugging percentage of .630. She did not commit an error and threw out 17 runners trying to steal.

“It’s just a lot of hard work and good coaching,’’ Schultz said. “I played a lot of softball this summer.’’

Smith said Schultz had a “bulldog’’ spirit behind the plate.

“She refuses to let her size be the deciding factor,’’ Smith said. “For as small a girl as she is, she has a lot of strength. She can do everything a big catcher can do. Her speed and quickness give her an advantage. She can do a lot of things a bigger catcher can’t.’’

Schultz always saw herself as confident but not cocky, despite the big words as an eighth-grader.

“I just knew if I worked hard I could do it,’’ she said. “You just have to be confident in your abilities to be successful.’’

A big talker she’s not.

“I lead more by example,’’ she said. “I tried to be a second coach on the field.’’

Her size isn’t the only example of how she doesn’t fit the prototype of a catcher.

She is the team’s leadoff hitter. Her first goal was to get on base any way, any how.

Once there she was aggressive.

She knows her speed was unique among catchers, whose legs are the first to go because of all the squatting over the years.

“It’s a lot of hard work,’’ said Schultz about keeping her legs sound. “You got to stay in shape. That’s where the summer stuff helps. You’re playing three to four games a day sometimes.’’

Schultz not only played for Mike Redding’s Enid Swingers, who took fourth place in the Junior Olympic Class B National Tournament, but played for the Titanium Gold team in Tulsa.

She had a little bit of Rickey Henderson and Craig Biggio in her in that she could hit for power, too.

Her most memorable homer was to lead off Pond Creek-Hunter’s victory over Drummond’s Holly Johnson in the Skeltur Conference championship game.

“It was the first pitch,’’ Schultz said, “and I took it over the fence.’’

Going to the state tournament was a little more meaningful for her this year than as a freshman, when she was catching fireballer Shelly Wood.

“It was a lot different then,’’ she said. “I was still learning the game. This year I knew more about what was going on. I appreciated it a lot more.’’

Schultz got a chance to play on the No. 1 field at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, the site of the Big 12 Conference and College Women’s Series, as well as several top international tournaments.

“That was a lot of fun,’’ Schultz said. “It was really cool.’’

What wasn’t cool was the Lady Panthers’ 3-1 loss to eventual champion Sterling in the first round.

“That was really disappointing,’’ Schultz said. “Two of the runs scored on questionable calls. I can’t make excuses. That’s how it goes.’’

Schultz wants to play college softball, although she doesn’t know where yet.

Her favorite memories aren’t necessarily trips to the state tournaments or lead-off home runs.

“The most fun I had playing softball was hanging out with my teammates,’’ Schultz said. “You get so close to them. It’s going to be a lot different next year not playing with them, but it’s still going to be softball, and it’s still going to be fun.’’

She has memories of shaving Smith’s head in the pitcher’s circle after the Lady Panthers won the regional tournament, assistant coach Steve Hendrix’s giving the girls Billy Bob T-shirts and the team having its picture taken at the water tower in Medford.

“It’s been a great year for our school,’’ said Schultz, who keeps stats for Pond Creek-Hunter’s undefeated football team. “Things like shaving coach Smith’s head was a lot of fun.’’

She is a 4.0 student, attacking the books the same way she does sports.

Schultz also plays basketball, slow-pitch softball and competes in track.