It’s 90 miles from Riverton High School to the softball field in Worland. Almost every day, 13 high school girls travel across a corrugated lake, an icy canyon and a sweep of farmland to get to practice.
The girls range in age from freshmen to seniors. They make the trip so they can be on the Worland High School softball team, which welcomed them to its ranks this year because Worland has a team, while the Riverton, Shoshoni and Lander high schools do not.
Once they cross the train tracks into Worland, the athletes unfurl their limbs so they can hit, catch and throw with the local team on a high windswept field just outside town.
After 90 minutes of practice, they’ll zigzag another 90 miles back home.
But the four girls from Lander Valley High School, eight from Riverton and one from Shoshoni High School are lucky. They have the time and resources to leave school early and make the round trip to Worland in about four cars, every day.
They goof around or do homework during the drive. Some put in extra study time in the late evening to make up for the half hour of school they miss each day.
‘Harder Than I Thought’
For 15-year-old Autumn Osborne, the daily three-hour journey is harder than she expected, but worth it.
A shortstop and centerfielder, Osborne has been playing softball for about seven years, she said. She’s also tried her hand at wrestling and track, but softball is her favorite.
“It gets my mind off things, kind of,” said Osborne, adding that she has made some good friends through the sport.
“The traveling is a lot harder than I thought. It’s kind of boring,” she said. “But it’s good meeting new girls and playing with new girls.”
Brenna Metzler, a Shoshoni High School freshman, agreed, saying it’s a long trip every day, but worth it.
Metzler said she must find a way to play high school ball: Her goal is to continue the sport on the collegiate level after high school.
Teams around the state are sparse, as this is the sport’s third season since the Wyoming High School Activities Association approved girls’ softball beginning in 2021. There were just eight teams that year out of 135 high schools statewide. That’s expanded to 13 teams now.
An Undertaking
The Fremont County school districts have not adopted softball as a girls’ sport, though some girls play on local recreation or travel teams in the summer.
The girls and their parents have been lobbying the Fremont County District 25 School Board of Riverton to sanction its own softball team since about August of last year, but it’s too late this season for the board to adopt the sport.
The girls are still holding out hope for next season.
They’re planning to attend a school board meeting Tuesday evening to drum up excitement for the sport that some of them have played recreationally for half their lives.
District Activities Director Reggie Miller is scheduled to present a report to the board breaking down expenses and other sanctioning technicalities.
Superintendent Dr. JoAnne Flanagan told Cowboy State Daily that adding softball isn’t a simple project and could entail memoranda of understanding with other entities like the city of Riverton, as well as significant preparation.
Miller has been researching the undertaking since the board asked him to look into it last autumn, she said.
“I know they (the board) always have the best interests of our kids at heart. Always,” said Flanagan. “I’ve seen that year after year. They have to make some hard decisions but it’s not without trying to put the needs of the kids first.”
The softball issue, said Flanagan, is another area where the board will apply “very careful consideration” before acting.
Flanagan said she knows the total dollar figure Miller anticipates to sanction the sport, but during her Friday interview did not want to surprise the board – which may not know the figure – by disclosing it in a news story prior to the public meeting.
‘She Shines In The Outfield’
Mika O’Brien moved to Wyoming nearly three months ago from central California.
That’s a big change for the girl, said her mother Lizzette O’Brien.
Mika plays shortstop and outfield, “but she shines in the outfield,” her mother told Cowboy State Daily.
In the central California culture the family just left to follow a new job opportunity for Mika’s father, most high school athletes choose just one sport and play it almost year-round.
Mika chose softball.
She also has played soccer, but she can’t choose it as a school sport now because softball and soccer seasons run at the same time in Wyoming, Lizzette said.
“We have a friend of the family … they said there was a good chance we could play softball for the school,” said Lizzette. “We got over here and found out that wasn’t quite true.”
The many obstacles the family faces make them even more grateful to the Worland team for enlisting the Fremont County girls, said O’Brien.
Within The Hailstorm
The Worland coaches are happy to have them, too.
Tim Barrus, head coach for the Worland team, told Cowboy State Daily on Monday that accommodating the new girls required a little adjustment.
Occasional foul balls rained down around Barrus while he spoke. Others flew fair onto the field, and Barrus studied their arcs out of the corner of his eye.
Now the idea of playing against the Fremont County girls one day if Riverton sanctions the sport is “bittersweet,” he said, adding that he’d love to have more teams to compete against.
But he also appreciates the depth on the bench and an added layer of internal competition the newcomers bring to the team.
“Let’s get some blisters on those hands tonight,” Barrus called out to the team.
The girls doubled down on batting practice Monday – a result of losing to Cody at home Friday. The Worland conglomerate team’s defense was sound, said Barrus, but the players’ hitting wasn’t enough to overcome Cody’s breakaway eight-run fifth inning.
Seeing The Field
Having more players makes the girls compete harder for the positions they want.
Cassy Miller, a senior at Riverton High School, took a break from batting practice to emphasize the joy of playing where you want to play.
Miller loves it behind home plate at catcher.
“I just like being able to see the field from a different perspective,” said Miller, who also plays center field.
Who Cares, Who Doesn’t
Ivey Roberts, a 17-year-old junior at Worland High School and a softball player for seven years, said she appreciates the newcomers too. They make her fight for what she wants.
“It’s a fresh start,” said Roberts. “You don’t just get the position you want, which is what we’ve done for previous years. Now you have to work hard for your spot, and it really shows who cares and who doesn’t.”
Top photo: Gear bags hang from a fence at Worland High School for 13 softball players from Riverton, Shoshoni and Lander who drive 90 miles each way to practice with the Worland High School team.
Bottom photo: High school softball players from Riverton, Shoshoni and Lander enjoy a warm spring day Monday to practice outside with the Worland High team. (Clair McFarland Photos, Cowboy State Daily)
