Switching Diamonds: Bellaire Softball Players Make Move to Baseball

BELLAIRE — Before the spring season began, Bellaire athletic director Brad Fischer had to make the tough call to cancel the softball season due to low numbers, but four of the players found a way to play on a different diamond.

“Our season, unfortunately, (came) to an end,” said Bellaire sophomore Brooklynn Clark. “But me and some of the other girls decided, let’s try the baseball thing.”

Clark, Alex Dawson, Karsyn Fischer and Bella Huffman all made a successful transition to play baseball this spring.

“It was my second option because I didn’t want to give up a season and it sounded fun,” Dawson said.

It’s been an adjustment all around, especially on the field.

“Baseball, we run a lot more, but it’s fun. That makes it pushes us because they treat us equally as the boys and we get the same opportunity as them,” Karsyn Fischer said.

“Infield is definitely a lot more stressful, especially with that 90-foot base difference versus our 60-feet in softball. It’s a lot scarier, like trying to move and get the ball where it’s supposed to go, especially when you have these six-foot boys running at you.”

Off the diamond, it’s even more different going from softball to baseball.

“We cheer a lot (in softball), and the boys (in baseball) just like clap or do a little bit of cheers,” Karsyn Fischer said. “So it’s different, like how we have to communicate and stuff.”

Not only did they have to make a change to a new sport, but the school also had to find new uniforms for the girls to fit in.

“It was a struggle and plus everything’s back-ordered and they’re saying 30 days,” Brad Fischer said. “So we just put out a bunch of orders and hopefully they came in on time so they could be equipped. And luckily it worked out that way for us.”

And recently, the Bellaire baseball team picked up its first victory of the season, marking the girls’ first win as baseball players.

“Just seeing the joy on everybody’s face, it’s kind of like a softball win, but everybody was so excited after those couple defeats and how hard we’ve been practicing,” Clark said. It was time for us to be able to say, ‘Yeah, we won.'”