Happy Anniversary: Celebrating 30 years

A double-digit loss in the 1981 regional tournament completely changed the landscape of the Fairfield High School softball program for the better, laying the foundation of what eventually turned into their greatest season ever. 

In the ensuing season of 1982, the Lady Lions avenged their loss in the regional finals, while in the process reaching the State Final Four.

Thirty years later this May … they are still the only softball team in Fairfield history to achieve the feat.

Looking back on the three-decade mark of earning a spot in the State Final Four, the best way then-Fairfield head coach Jim D. Cook described the history-making team of '82 was close-knit.

"We are very proud of the fact we've been the only softball team to make it to the Final Four, but there have been many good teams through the years here in Leesburg," Cook said. "I told Matthew (Zimmerman) following the regional finals last season … it could be what happened to us back in the 1981 and 1982 seasons."

What happened those two seasons … a shutout loss in the regional final to Portsmouth Clay and a 15-run loss in a regular-season game in 1982 to the same program, only to make the saying "the third time's a charm" come true by defeating Portsmouth Clay to earn their aforementioned trip to the Final Four.

After the loss in the regional finals in '81, Cook took his team to the outfield and discussed what they needed to do to reach even greater success in '82. 

It worked. 

At that time, Portsmouth Clay was the standard of all softball teams, winning 83 straight games at one point, as the '82 season was the fifth year softball was an official OHSAA sport.

In a four-year span, Portsmouth Clay was 86-2, winning two state titles and losing in the state tournament twice. 

"Playing Portsmouth Clay in those first two games taught us so much about how softball should be played and what a program should be like," Cook said. "My opinion is teams need to play the caliber of a Portsmouth Clay because though it may not be a win … players will learn from it."

In those first two games against Portsmouth, the Lady Lions lost 29-0 and 18-3, but that all was motivation in their third meeting, in the same spot as their first meeting … in the regional finals of ’82.

The game looked to be a repeat of the first two meetings as the Lady Lions trailed 6-0 following two innings … then the skies opened up in Waverly and a two-hour rain delay ensued.

As Cook described, during the delay he spoke with his team and settled them down, getting all the nerves out of the way, while on the other side of the diamond, the Portsmouth Clay team was “messing around.”

"I gave the girls a talk to settle them down, and what do you know … our girls rallied to make the score 6-5, and we eventually won 10-7. 

"Portsmouth Clay was absolutely shocked, and to be honest, so were we. Needless to say, we enjoyed that game and that experience."

The comeback began in the third inning with Kim Campbell hitting a single, and as the Lady Lions eventually loaded the bases, Gloria Sowders tripled, making the score 6-5 in the third. 

In the fifth, FHS took an 8-6 lead, winning the game at 10-7 with Sowders catching the final out on a fly ball.

Even though the Lady Lions lost their game in the Final Four to eventual state champion Archbold 7-2, the overall season was a success with the Lady Lions winning 18 games and losing just five times, along with a perfect Southern Hills League record of 10-0 and tournament wins over Whiteoak (16-6), Lynchburg-Clay (12-4), Eastern Pike (13-8), New Albany (12-9) and Portsmouth Clay (10-7).

At the start of the '82 season, FHS won their first three games by a combined total of 45-19, then lost two straight before defeating Manchester, 21-6. That win was followed by the aforementioned loss to Portsmouth Clay at PCHS by an 18-3 score.

Following that game, the Lady Lions won six in a row, defeating Fayetteville, Ripley, East Clinton, Peebles, West Union and North Adams. Those six wins put FHS at 10-3 overall, outscoring their opponents 201-116 in the first 13 games.

In those first 13 games, two of the wins were by one run with a 13-12 win over East Clinton and an 8-7 win over Peebles, who were the league champions the previous season.

"We scored a lot of runs and gave up a lot of runs, too," Cook said.

Following what was their final regular-season loss against Clinton-Massie, the Lady Lions went on an eight-game winning streak before losing to Archbold in the Final Four.

En route to the SHL title, the Lady Lions traveled to West Union and were ahead 10-8 in the seventh inning (with two outs) when West Union hit a line drive to right field, and as it curved near the foul line, Kim Campbell reached and caught the ball for the final out, saving the perfect SHL mark, as the Lady Lions eventually wrapped up the perfect SHL season with a victory over Georgetown.

"We lost to Whiteoak that year in a non-league game when our seniors were away on a trip," Cook said.

Having only 12 players, nine who saw a majority of the playing time, they were led in the circle by senior Pam Bartley, and catching her behind the plate was sophomore Corinne Bartley, her sister, who has since passed away. 

"Pam was a good pitcher," Cook said. "She kept the ball around the knees, and what she did well was she didn't walk many people.

"Overall, we were a good defensive team, but we could score a lot of runs. We really didn't face what you would call fast pitching until the district finals."

The starting lineup for the Lady Lions looked like this … Kay Cummings (CF), Pam Bartley (P), Gloria Sowders (SS), Stacey Bobbitt (3B), Tracy Bobb (1B), Susan Campbell (LF), Corinne Bartley (C), Kim Campbell (RF) and Annie Barrett (2B). The subs were Angie Shaffer, Shawnda Burnett and Hope Lawwell.

The '82 Lady Lions are credited for giving every other team that has followed something to strive for.

"I know this team could hold their own today, but this team also had a lot to do with the way the entire softball program is today," Cook said. "We started a summer league, and after the '82 season, everyone has wanted to reach that goal of the Final Four.”

Cook spoke about the team’s work ethic.

"This team loved to play softball and had a great work ethic. They would look forward to practices as much as they did the games," Cook said. "Like I said before, they all got along well, they were tight-knit, they encouraged each other and there was no resentment."

This past winter, the entire team was inducted into the Fairfield High School Athletic Hall of Fame, and as Cook, who coached softball for 13 seasons and drove the bus to the games, said, it was a great honor.

"We have a lot of great memories, memories that nobody can ever take away from us," he said. "We got together at the hall of fame and told stories, looked at pictures from that season and had a good time.

"It meant a lot to the team to be inducted into the Fairfield Hall of Fame, and we were pleased to be remembered 30 years later. The hall of fame brought the team back together, and it also showed the younger kids they have something to shoot for."

(Tom Purtell contributed to this article.)

A double-digit loss in the 1981 regional tournament completely changed the landscape of the Fairfield High School softball program for the better, laying the foundation of what eventually turned into their greatest season ever. 

In the ensuing season of 1982, the Lady Lions avenged their loss in the regional finals, while in the process reaching the State Final Four.

Thirty years later this May … they are still the only softball team in Fairfield history to achieve the feat.

Looking back on the three-decade mark of earning a spot in the State Final Four, the best way then-Fairfield head coach Jim D. Cook described the history-making team of '82 was close-knit.

"We are very proud of the fact we've been the only softball team to make it to the Final Four, but there have been many good teams through the years here in Leesburg," Cook said. "I told Matthew (Zimmerman) following the regional finals last season … it could be what happened to us back in the 1981 and 1982 seasons."

What happened those two seasons … a shutout loss in the regional final to Portsmouth Clay and a 15-run loss in a regular-season game in 1982 to the same program, only to make the saying "the third time's a charm" come true by defeating Portsmouth Clay to earn their aforementioned trip to the Final Four.

After the loss in the regional finals in '81, Cook took his team to the outfield and discussed what they needed to do to reach even greater success in '82. 

It worked. 

At that time, Portsmouth Clay was the standard of all softball teams, winning 83 straight games at one point, as the '82 season was the fifth year softball was an official OHSAA sport.

In a four-year span, Portsmouth Clay was 86-2, winning two state titles and losing in the state tournament twice. 

"Playing Portsmouth Clay in those first two games taught us so much about how softball should be played and what a program should be like," Cook said. "My opinion is teams need to play the caliber of a Portsmouth Clay because though it may not be a win … players will learn from it."

In those first two games against Portsmouth, the Lady Lions lost 29-0 and 18-3, but that all was motivation in their third meeting, in the same spot as their first meeting … in the regional finals of ’82.

The game looked to be a repeat of the first two meetings as the Lady Lions trailed 6-0 following two innings … then the skies opened up in Waverly and a two-hour rain delay ensued.

As Cook described, during the delay he spoke with his team and settled them down, getting all the nerves out of the way, while on the other side of the diamond, the Portsmouth Clay team was “messing around.”

"I gave the girls a talk to settle them down, and what do you know … our girls rallied to make the score 6-5, and we eventually won 10-7. 

"Portsmouth Clay was absolutely shocked, and to be honest, so were we. Needless to say, we enjoyed that game and that experience."

The comeback began in the third inning with Kim Campbell hitting a single, and as the Lady Lions eventually loaded the bases, Gloria Sowders tripled, making the score 6-5 in the third. 

In the fifth, FHS took an 8-6 lead, winning the game at 10-7 with Sowders catching the final out on a fly ball.

Even though the Lady Lions lost their game in the Final Four to eventual state champion Archbold 7-2, the overall season was a success with the Lady Lions winning 18 games and losing just five times, along with a perfect Southern Hills League record of 10-0 and tournament wins over Whiteoak (16-6), Lynchburg-Clay (12-4), Eastern Pike (13-8), New Albany (12-9) and Portsmouth Clay (10-7).

At the start of the '82 season, FHS won their first three games by a combined total of 45-19, then lost two straight before defeating Manchester, 21-6. That win was followed by the aforementioned loss to Portsmouth Clay at PCHS by an 18-3 score.

Following that game, the Lady Lions won six in a row, defeating Fayetteville, Ripley, East Clinton, Peebles, West Union and North Adams. Those six wins put FHS at 10-3 overall, outscoring their opponents 201-116 in the first 13 games.

In those first 13 games, two of the wins were by one run with a 13-12 win over East Clinton and an 8-7 win over Peebles, who were the league champions the previous season.

"We scored a lot of runs and gave up a lot of runs, too," Cook said.

Following what was their final regular-season loss against Clinton-Massie, the Lady Lions went on an eight-game winning streak before losing to Archbold in the Final Four.

En route to the SHL title, the Lady Lions traveled to West Union and were ahead 10-8 in the seventh inning (with two outs) when West Union hit a line drive to right field, and as it curved near the foul line, Kim Campbell reached and caught the ball for the final out, saving the perfect SHL mark, as the Lady Lions eventually wrapped up the perfect SHL season with a victory over Georgetown.

"We lost to Whiteoak that year in a non-league game when our seniors were away on a trip," Cook said.

Having only 12 players, nine who saw a majority of the playing time, they were led in the circle by senior Pam Bartley, and catching her behind the plate was sophomore Corinne Bartley, her sister, who has since passed away. 

"Pam was a good pitcher," Cook said. "She kept the ball around the knees, and what she did well was she didn't walk many people.

"Overall, we were a good defensive team, but we could score a lot of runs. We really didn't face what you would call fast pitching until the district finals."

The starting lineup for the Lady Lions looked like this … Kay Cummings (CF), Pam Bartley (P), Gloria Sowders (SS), Stacey Bobbitt (3B), Tracy Bobb (1B), Susan Campbell (LF), Corinne Bartley (C), Kim Campbell (RF) and Annie Barrett (2B). The subs were Angie Shaffer, Shawnda Burnett and Hope Lawwell.

The '82 Lady Lions are credited for giving every other team that has followed something to strive for.

"I know this team could hold their own today, but this team also had a lot to do with the way the entire softball program is today," Cook said. "We started a summer league, and after the '82 season, everyone has wanted to reach that goal of the Final Four.”

Cook spoke about the team’s work ethic.

"This team loved to play softball and had a great work ethic. They would look forward to practices as much as they did the games," Cook said. "Like I said before, they all got along well, they were tight-knit, they encouraged each other and there was no resentment."

This past winter, the entire team was inducted into the Fairfield High School Athletic Hall of Fame, and as Cook, who coached softball for 13 seasons and drove the bus to the games, said, it was a great honor.

"We have a lot of great memories, memories that nobody can ever take away from us," he said. "We got together at the hall of fame and told stories, looked at pictures from that season and had a good time.

"It meant a lot to the team to be inducted into the Fairfield Hall of Fame, and we were pleased to be remembered 30 years later. The hall of fame brought the team back together, and it also showed the younger kids they have something to shoot for."