'Sky’s the limit for us.' How South Bend Riley softball has restored its roar in 2024
SOUTH BEND — It wasn’t long ago the South Bend Riley softball team was ranked No. 1 in the state of Indiana.
It was even more recent, though, that the Wildcats couldn’t even field a team for a season.
The Wildcat program has seen its fair share of ups-and-downs in the past 15 years, going from the state’s best in 2012 to not playing the 2017 season due to low participation numbers. In the eight years since, Riley has come nearly full circle as a top-five team in Class 3A again.
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Riley’s 6-3 win over city rival Adams Wednesday pushed the Wildcats’ record to 8-0 overall and 3-0 in Northern Indiana Conference play. Riley has moved from unranked at season's start to No. 3 in the Class 3A coaches poll.
“We’re not trying to hide from that,” Riley coach Shawn Jenkins said of the high ranking. “I try to let them know that the expectations are we have to play well. … The level of how good we’re playing is surprising me some. I thought we could go out and win ballgames.”
South Bend Riley softball back to winning ways
After 2017, former Riley standout Morgan Allison set about restoring the program. Although Allison didn’t win many games as head coach, she laid the groundwork for Jenkins to take over in 2020.
One issue, though: nobody played in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was another setback for the program, as the Wildcats were poised to have a breakout season.
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Jenkins’ first official year in 2021, Riley won four games. It improved each season since, winning 11 in 2022 and 17 last year. The Wildcats are almost halfway to that total this season and it’s only mid-April.
“The sky’s the limit for us,” Jenkins said. “We don’t have any senior starters. We’re trying to continue to build the program with everything we can and play the right way.”
Dominating in all facets
Not only is Riley is unbeaten, but has done so with relative ease. The Wildcats have scored 19, 18, 17 and 10 runs in games this year, the latter happening twice. They’ve finally played some close games this week — a 5-3 win over No. 5 (2A) Bremen Monday and Wednesday's three-run triumph over Adams.
Junior Lexington Jenkins anchors the lineup with a .571 average and a team-high 15 RBI. Junior Victorya Harmon is a hitting machine, posting a .522 average. Of the seven players with at least 17 official at-bats this season, six of them have averages of .316 or better.
Two of those sluggers are also the team’s primary pitchers in junior Kaelynn Howell and sophomore Elliana Gonzales. The former has a 1.31 ERA and latter 1.40, with Howell earning three of the wins and Gonzales five. They’ve allowed 23 hits in 46 innings pitched through Wednesday’s games.
“I definitely thought this could be possible, especially with how much hard work we put in during the offseason,” Gonzales said. “Coming into the season, we’ve put in even more work, and it’s starting to show.”
Trying to beat “the big three”
While Riley is off to a fantastic start, they have yet to face three of the best teams in the state that also happen to play within its conference in No. 3 (4A) Penn, No. 2 (3A) New Prairie and No. 7 (4A) South Bend Saint Joseph. Penn won the Class 4A state title last year, New Prairie the Class 3A state crown a year ago and Saint Joseph the 3A title in 2022 before moving to 4A last season.
High school polls: South Bend Riley softball ranked No. 3 in Class 3A
The Wildcats are scheduled to play those three on consecutive Wednesday’s between May 1-15. It’ll be a real test to see where Riley stands up amongst the state’s elite.
“The big three are just on a different level,” Jenkins said. “They’ve all won a state title in the last two years. It’s tough. They have great programs and great kids; the coaches are great. We’ve tried to learn from them.”
New Prairie is also a potential sectional foe for Riley, with the Cougars knocking the Wildcats out of the playoffs in the sectional semifinals a season ago. It’s served as motivation for Riley to start the way they have this year — and finish it differently this time around.
“From the beginning, I’ve been telling everyone that we’re going to win sectionals this year,” Howell said. “I’m 100% devoted and I still believe we can do it. … I remember freshman year, I was really scared to play Penn, Saint Joe and all of them. But coming into this year, I 100% think we can beat New Prairie. We’re playing really well right now, and I’m proud of us.”
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: South Bend Riley softball back among Indiana's elite in 2024
