Clay High School softball reaches 700th program victory

Press Sports Editor
sports@presspublications.com

It’s fitting that a milestone would come in dramatic fashion.
Last week, Clay CF Brynn Reiter hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning in a 3-2 victory of St. Ursula to give the Eagle softball program its 700th victory.
“Jeff Lee was the first coach and he got the first chunk (of the victories),” said Clay coach Brenda Radabaugh. “Clay High School and Oregon has a rich softball community with a strong softball program, and it’s just exciting that we could (reach) that milestone this year.”
Now, the Eagles are in the top 25 in victories in OHSAA history.
“Clay softball fans are incredible. It doesn’t matter how many miles away we travel, we always have fans in the stands,” said Radabaugh. “The families of our players are supportive and always show up. Over the years, there have been games where we have more fans than the home team.”
It’s been quite a journey for Radabaugh and the community.
“There are some specific plays in games that stand out in my memories, but each season has its own special moments,” she said. “I can’t pick just one, but when I reminisce, the smiles far outweigh the disappointments.” Radabaugh is in her 24th season coaching the Eagles, and she’s had some great teams during her tenure that have won league and district titles.
Two of her top players, Honnah Susor and Haley Dominique, played collegiately at Wright State University and Ball State University; there have also been many other greats like Melissa Bowie, Emile Ondrus, Kristin Crawford, Monica Sigurdson, Kadie Ondrus, Ashley Henney, Mollie Berry, Kristina Rendle, Brandy Holmes, Kasey Graham, Eryn Simon, Danielle Holmes, Kim Crawford, Brooke Gallaher, Rebekah Yenrick, Hayley Schiavone and Tiffany Stevens, many of whom played the sport at the next level.
Lee built the foundation of the program, and Radabaugh has taken it to new heights.
“Jeff Lee started the softball program at Clay in 1985 and worked hard to transform the community from slow pitch to fast pitch,” said Radabaugh. “When I took over in 2001, things were already running smoothly. I just kept the ball rolling.”
Radabaugh, who was a math teacher, was coaching softball at Central Catholic, and the program was in good shape, but she took a chance to take over the program at Clay, and it’s paid off.
“I had a great group of players at Central Catholic, so it was difficult to leave them, but I had already been teaching at Clay for 15 years when Jeff Lee resigned as the head softball coach,” she said. “It ended up being one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I’ve been blessed with talented softball players and dedicated assistant coaches over the years. None of the success would have been possible without them.
“When I accepted the varsity job at Clay, Kim Rector agreed to be my varsity assistant coach and she has been with us the entire time. She has been a great motivator and brings a tremendous amount of positive energy every day. She deserves as much credit as I do,” Radabaugh said.
The Eagles have won seven district titles, six under Radabaugh’s direction — ’99, ’02, ’09, ’13, ’14, ’16 and ’19 — and 16 league titles in the Great Lakes League, the City League and the Three Rivers Athletic Conference, 13 of them during Radabaugh’s tenure — ’96, ’99, ’00, ’01, ’02, ’03, ’06, ’07, ’09, ’10, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’19 — including a five-peat from 1999-2003 and a four-peat from 2013-2016.