Bernie SB 2024 seniors leave lasting impression with work, results

Bernie High School senior Elicia Freeman runs to first base after connecting with a pitch against Holcomb in the MSHSAA Class 1 Third-Place Game at the Killian Sports Complex in Springfield last month.

Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

The Bernie High School softball program is going to have quite the task in 2025 in topping its 2024 achievements.

The Mules won 22 games this spring, which was the most since 2019, as well as the program’s first trip to the MSHSAA Class 1 State Finals, where the Mules took fourth place.

“We talked with (the team) about if you want to get back to this place again,” veteran Bernie coach Brad Botsch said after his team’s season ended, “you have to go to work.”

That was the message for the 11 returning players, however, Botsch also spoke of how impactful the three graduating seniors (Abby Powell, Piper Winstead, and Elicia Freeman) were to the program.

“The first thing that I always talk about after the last loss of the year,” Botsch said, “is that we appreciate our seniors.”

Particularly this group, which historically closed their career.

The Bernie program rolled through the 2017, 2018, and 2019 seasons winning 23 games in each, as well as claiming a MSHSAA Class 1 District 3 title in 2019. When Powell, Winstead, and Freeman entered the high school ranks following a canceled 2020 season due to Covid-19, a rebuilding process began.

The Mules won 12, 16, and 13 games over their first three years with the program before breaking through this season.

“They are good kids and they worked hard,” Botsch said of the 2024 seniors. “It is hard to replace seniority.”

Bernie High School senior Abby Powell watches a pop-up sail upward after connecting with a pitch against Holcomb in the MSHSAA Class 1 Third-Place Game at the Killian Sports Complex in Springfield last month. (Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com)

On and off the diamond.

Powell brought leadership behind the plate and in the dugout, as she hit .415 in her final season and her 34 hits ranked second on the squad.

 “I think her experience,” Botsch said of what makes Powell special. “She has played for four years, and she has some toughness and some grit.”

Freeman played in 31 games this spring and drove in 25 runs while Winstead saw action in seven games in her final season.

“New kids will have to fill those shoes,” Botsch said, “but I am really happy with the work that (those seniors) have done this year.”