TRR photo by Mary Greene Members of the first place Sullivan West/Narrowsburg modified softball team hoist Coach Sue Grund on their shoulders after winning their final season game on May 25. Back row, from left: Margaret Kuen, Ashley Kearns, Amanda McGrath, Melanie Buddenhagen, Cassie Valentin, Coach Sue Grund (seated on shoulders,) Crystal Campfield, Stephanie Venturini and Ashley Swingle. Front row, from left: Heather Lander, Rachel Peloquin, Mary Kuen, Nicole Gonzalez, Christine McGrath, April Keesler, Beth Taylor. Not pictured: Christina Vidal, who was moved up to the Varsity Squad. (Click for larger image)

Former Narrowsburg pitching star coaches winning season

By MARY GREENE

NARROWSBURG - The Sullivan West/Narrowsburg girls modified softball team completed their season May 25 with a win against Tri-Valley. Their season record was eight wins and one loss.

The secret to their success?

"Teamwork," said Coach Sue Grund, a junior at Marywood University and former pitching star at Narrowsburg. (In 1996, her team won the WSL championship.) "They all got along and worked together. They were determined."

The long hours spent in the Narrowsburg gym doing drills didn't hurt either. Grund had the girls hit tennisballs, golfballs and even basketballs to teach them to focus and swing level. During her career as a player, when there was no modified level, she noticed that girls did not have the opportunity to pick up skills they needed to play at the varsity level. "We went straight from Missy [League] to Varsity. It was tough," she said.

She sees the modified level as a chance for players to pick up skills and learn the strategy of the game. She taught her players to bunt, to steal bases and even how to follow signs. Frequently during a game, batters glanced over to Grund at third base who was busy touching her nose and patting the top of her head. She signed whether they should bunt, steal a base or hold off on a swing if the count was 3 and 0.

"I ended up teaching a lot more than I thought I would," she said.

At the beginning of the season she asked her players to write their definition of teamwork, along with what position they wanted to play, on a piece of paper. One girl wrote: "A team is a group of two or more people trying to accomplish something in a way that everyone is equal." Others said teams "do not fight or argue during practice or a game," and "they don't quit when they fail, they just work harder."

The Indians failed but once, in a bitter match with rival Eldred on an afternoon when the rain seemed to be coming down everywhere but over the Eldred field. The girls did not have their usual pizzazz, and when the game was tied up in the seventh inning, Narrowsburg uncharacteristically got three outs in a row. Ballgame over, except for insults hurled back and forth between the two teams.

Perhaps significantly, Coach Grund was not present for that loss, unavoidably tied up with school and work obligations. But her parents were. Ed Grund, her father, acted as assistant coach, and "This season would not have been as successful if my father didn't help me," said Sue. Both of her parents attended every game, and her mother was often the only fan when the distance was far. "That was nice," said Grund.

Grund pursues a dual major at Marywood of elementary education and early childhood education. During her first year at Marywood she joined the softball team and pitched for 95 percent of the games. But after that she got too busy to play, completing 19 credits and holding down a job.

Does she miss it? "I miss not playing," said Grund. "But with the girls, I get to play with them."

Grund plans to return next year to coach at the same level.

CALLICOON - The first annual golf tournament to benefit the Grover M. Hermann Hospital Auxiliary will be held on Saturday, June 17 at the French Woods Golf & Country Club on Route 97 in French Woods. Shotgun start is at 10:00 a.m.

Prizes will be given for first, second and third place along with closest to the pin, longest drive and others.

Entry fee is $55 and includes the green, cart fees, refreshments on the greens and a steak-chicken barbecue. Cash bar will also be available.

If you are interested in forming a foursome or sponsoring a hole, call Noreen Mudge at 914/887-5465.

By CASSIE VALENTIN

"Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I got. Yet today I consider myself the luckiest man alive. I may have had a tough break, but I have a lot to live for." These famous words were spoken by an extraordinary baseball player. This man played in 2,130 consecutive games, ranks the third all-time highest in RBI's, and has a lifetime batting average of a fantastic .340-the fifteenth highest of all time. He is Lou Gherig.

Henry Louis Gherig was the son of German immigrants. He got his big break in college while playing for Columbia Nine. He was discovered by a Yankee Scout and moved up to the minors where he hit .304. After a short while he made it to the majors where he hit an amazing .423 in 26 at-bats.

While playing with the Yankees, Gherig met Babe Ruth and the two teamed up to out-homer every team but one. They became the greatest home-run duo in the history of baseball. That all changed, however, during an off-season trip to Japan.

Apparently, Mrs. Gherig made a rude remark about the way Ruth's daughter dressed, and thus ended the wonderful relationship. Joe DiMaggio took Ruth's place, and for the next two years Gherig and DiMaggio dominated the league.

However, in 1938-39, Gherig started to slip. He fell below .300 for the first time in thirteen years and it was clear that something was wrong. When fellow Yankee teammates complimented Gherig on an average play, he knew it was time to break his streak and take himself out of the game. Doctors soon diagnosed him with Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis, a disease that attacks the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Gherig would never be able to play baseball again.

On July 4, 1939, over 60,000 fans showed up to honor Gherig. While giving his now famous speech, Ruth walked over, and the two exchanged words for the first time in six years.

Gherig entered The Hall of Fame in 1939, and the Yankees retired his number "4." In fact, Gherig was the first person to ever have his number retired, thus starting the tradition. On June 2, 1941, a day that will be remembered forever, Lou Gherig died at the age of 38.

This first baseman was a very brave man who, even after retiring from baseball, worked on youth projects for New York until he lost the ability to walk. Gherig sets great example for everyone out there to be thankful for what they have, or in his case, had. Lou Gherig was a wonderful man who will always remain in people's hearts.

[Cassie Valentin is an eighth grader at Sullivan West/Narrowsburg.]