Bedford County Post

3DWULFLD )DUUDU %OXH -D\ )DUUDU -DPHV )DUUDU %OXH )DUUDU Sports Bedford County Post June 19, 2024 12A By CHRIS SIERS csiers@ bedfordcountypost.com C laire Perry has played softball for most of her life. Her love for the game has never wavered, from her earliest days playing at the Hillard-Gardner league, to joining travel ball in fourth grade, all the way through her scholas- tic career playing at Cas- cade. “I’ve played ever since I could remember. I played at Hillard-Gard- ner. One of my coaches coached me from when I was four years old until sixth grade. When I was in fourth grade, I started playing travel ball. I’ve al- ways loved it,” she said. That life-long path of playing softball eventu- ally led to her signing to continue her career at the collegiate level playing at UT-Southern, beginning this fall. “It’s kind of crazy. I remember the fi rst sign- ing I went to for a senior on the team was Cenzie McAnally, I thought it was such a far-fetched thing. As I got older, I realized this was a real thing I could do,” Perry said. “I told the team it doesn’t feel real.” While the surreal fee- ing of putting pen to paper and making it o ffi cial may have felt unreal, Perry’s performance at a tourna- ment at UT-Southern’s campus, as well as her ver- satility playing multiple positions over the years, made her a perfect if fi t for the Firebirds. “Whenever I played in my tournament there, I played out fi eld for like the fi rst time in three years. They kind of saw me as a utility player. I’ve played everywhere, except pitch- er and catcher. If I needed to play somewhere else, I could,” she said. Her versatility in the fi eld was only part of the equation. After meeting the coaching sta ff and touring the facility, Perry knew where her college career would take her. “Whenever I went to a tournament I played in at UT-Southern, I just loved the coaches and a nice facility. I’ve been here since kindergarten and I’ve always wanted to go to a smaller school. They said about 80% of their students are student-ath- letes. So professors work with them really well,” she said. While she’s been part of special teams over her 14-plus years playing, when it comes down to it, her years spent with the Lady Champions in the dugout, joining in the cheers and playing the spring grind of a busy schedule ranks among her favorite memories. “It has to be when we’re in the dugout with the school ball team. It just gets crazy and we’re screaming at the top of our lungs,” she said. Perry plans to pursue a degree in business. UT-Southern is aNAIA school and competes in the Southern States Ath- letic Conference. During the 2024 sea- son, UT-Southern posted a 26-22 overall record. Perry was a staple of the Lady Champion infield and spent the majority of her senior season playing second base. –Post Photo by Chris Siers By CHRIS SIERS csiers@ bedfordcountypost.com S HELBYVILLE — While a total team score didn’t result in a win in the second sum- mer meet, plenty of Sharks continue to make weekly improvements, with the goal of peak- ing during next month’s league championship meet. PaizleyHodges turned in a fi ne performance in the meet, winning the girls 15-19 50-meter butter fl y in 34.14., and fi nishing second in the 50-meter freestyle and 100-meter IM. She also helped the girls 15-19 100-meter freestyle relay team take home the win, along with Dijana Geary, Ally May- bee and Grace Moody. Anna Marsh fi nished second in the girls’ 7-8 25-meter freestyle be- hind Miller Luna. Marsh also won the 25-meter butter fl y and took second in the 25-meter freestyle. In the girls 11-12 50-meter freestyle, Leah Landers took home a win in 37.56 and Andrew Downing won the boys 13-14 50-meter freestyle. “Overall, I’m very proud of so many of our swimmers. So many of them have such a passion for swimming already. Ultimately, that’s the most important thing to me as a coach,” Sharks coach Lauren Ball said. The Sharks are on the road on Thursday night at Fayetteville before re- turning home on June 25 for a meet against Lewis- burg at 5 p.m. Perry headed to UT-Southern Claire Perry signed her letter of intent earlier this spring to continue her softball career at UT-Southern. –Photo courtesy of David Smith Andrew Downing powers through the butterfly leg of the boys 13-14 100-meter IM. He finished second in the race. –Post Photos by Chris Siers Addie Betzelberger works through the girls 7-8 25-meter backstroke. She finished second in the meet against Athens. Sharks keep improving in 2nd summer meet STAFF REPORT U NIONVILLE — While the school season ended last month, there’s still plenty of work to be done on the fi eld for county baseball teams. Hoping to log more time on the fi eld, Community and Shelbyville Central have been hard at work getting needed at- bats, pitching outings and time on the fi eld to prepare for next season. While they met in Unionville last Thursday, the two teams played again on Tuesday night. Community, Shelbyville putting in summer work LEFT: Ashton Whorley fires a strike at Community on Thursday. BOTTOM: Logan Reed delivers a pitch against Shelbyville Central. –Post Photos by Chris Siers