In the wide, wide world of sports, victories and championships are the yardsticks by which coaches are measured.
On Monday night, with a 16-0 victory over John Hardin High School, Penny Reece, head coach of the Grayson County High School Lady Cougars softball team, reached a pinnacle of success only one other coach in the history of high school softball in Kentucky has ever attained: 700 career wins.
Reece, in her 26th season as a head softball coach in Kentucky, amassed 700 victories at three schools: Greenwood High School in Bowling Green, Meade County High School and Grayson County High School.
Her Greenwood teams won three state championships, including back-to-back titles in 2007 and 2008, and in 2013, Reece’s Lady Gators squad dominated the commonwealth by posting a 44-0 mark, setting a record for most consecutive victors and winning Reece’s third state title.
The 2013 Lady Gators team was ranked third in the country and outscored opponents 377-24 while recording 26 shutouts. Only once did that team allow as many as three runs in a game (a 5-3 victory over Mercy in the state semifinals).
Reece, after the historic 2013 Lady Gators season, was named the MaxPreps’ National High School Softball Coach of the Year. That honor goes along with the six times Reece has been selected Kentucky high school softball coach of the year.
Reece, self-described as “old school,” has additionally won 11 region championships and 16 district titles during her time on the diamond.
The former Grayson County High School three-sport star (softball, basketball, track), who went on to play college basketball at Lindsey Wilson College and Bethel University, was understandably enthused to have won the 700th game of her unparalleled career at GCHS.
“It’s very special (to win the 700th game at Grayson County High School). When I made the decision (to coach at Grayson County) … people thought I was crazy,” Reece said. “(They said), ‘You want to go back to Grayson County?’ I said, ‘Listen, you all, when I walk past it and see my name up there on the side of the concession stand and being (in the school’s) hall of fame, that means something, because this is home.’”
Reece, noting the struggle of reconstructing a program once accustomed to success, said that hard-earned victories amid a string of losses are the sweetest fruit.
“And I can tell you, when you come to a program that has struggled and you’re trying to rebuild it, every win really means a lot,” Reece exclaimed. “Whereas, you’re used to clicking them (victories) off, maybe they don’t mean (as much) … These (wins) mean a lot! And that’s what I told the kids. I had them all sign the (700th win) ball. I said, “Your name is going to go in my case.’” I’m telling you, there’s a lot of balls with a lot of wins (in my case), but number 700 has come hard.”
She knew, after experiencing overwhelming success at Greenwood and posting a 73-37-2 mark in four years at Meade County, that victories would be, at least initially, difficult to come by at Grayson County. But Reece, in her second season at her alma mater, is driven by two things; rebuilding the program that holds a special place in her heart, and giving back to the community that has been so good to her.
“When I decided to take this job, when I decided I wanted to come home and I wanted to give back, well, I knew those wins weren’t going to accumulate they like used to,” the coach said. “It’s frustrating at times. Things aren’t clicking here as quickly as I wanted them to, I mean they’re not. But that’s okay, because at the end of the day, I feel like I’m doing something good here.”
Witnessing her 700th victory Monday night was her father, Jimmy Edwards, who exuded pride as he watched Reece capture the milestone victory a decade after he and his late wife Anna spent their 50th anniversary watching Reece win the 2013 state championship with Greenwood.
“I’m proud to be Penny’s dad. I’ve watched her over all these years. I’ve watched her come from playing little league baseball, to playing college basketball,” Edwards said. “I watched her win three state championships while in Bowling Green. In 2013, I watched her team go 44-0, undefeated for the year, which was quite an accomplishment. I’m thankful she’s won this many games and thankful to be a part of this celebration.”
Edwards said his daughter’s success isn’t much of a surprise. He, after all, watched Reece compete throughout her playing career; always with focus and a resolve to perform to the best of her ability.
“She’s always been interested in ball. She started out making the all-star team with the little leaguers, and she is a girl!” Edwards stated. “She’s always been into ball of some type; basketball and softball. She’s always been successful and very determined to do her best.”
The future
The brutally honest Reece is self-aware enough to know her style of coaching, although producing unequaled success, can be construed as caustic or uncaring. But she feels one of the ways to improve the Lady Cougar softball program is by holding its players accountable. Something she has and continues to do, because Reece is determined to turn the fortunes of the GCHS softball program around.
“We’ve had a lot of kids quit the program. We’ve had a lot of kids decide not to play,” Reece noted. “But still, I told them (the Lady Cougars), I don’t care if we get down to nine (players), I’m going to work just as hard … so it’s been very challenging. I guess the challenge that I’m facing here every day, and sometimes you do ask yourself, ‘Why?’ You kind of get caught up and say, ‘Why am I doing this,’ but then I come out here (to the ballpark) and (I think), ‘Because they need this.’ I’m not sure they all need Penny Reece in general, because I’m a little bit too much for a lot of them because I take it so seriously.”
While her style of coaching isn’t palatable to everyone, it’s obviously produced jaw-dropping results, and don’t expect Reece to change her method for attaining success.
“I own who I am, I own my coaching style,” Reece said. “And I’m not going to sway from that. I know times are changing, kids are different, and parents are changing big time. I’m not going to change. Love me or hate me, that’s fine, I did not come back home to make friends, I came back home to try and rebuild this program. And that’s where I’m going to stand. I mean Grayson County has had some great teams along the years, but there hasn’t been any consistency now for a while. There’s been an overturn of coaches the last few years, and they deserve more than that, you know.”
(Headline photo: GCHS head softball coach Penny Reece on the field Monday night after winning her 700th game)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
