Casey Finch was a 22-year-old nursing student at Mississippi University for Women when she got a life-changing phone call.
“(East Mississippi Community College) called and asked if I wanted to help with coaching softball,” Finch said. “I guess now looking back you can call it a huge break. It really change my whole career path. I gave it a try and fell in love with it.”
Finch just completed her second season as head coach at West Point High School. To the casual observer, the Green Wave’s 7-13 record was nothing to write home about. The squad missed the playoffs by a game. However, Finch is building a program and sees the tangible evidence of its growth each day.
Qiayon Bailey led West Point to the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 5A playoffs and 21 wins in basketball this season. Bailey earned Player of the Year honors from The Dispatch and also earned a scholarship to Meridian Community College.
Finch takes the story from there.
“When I first started coach Qiayon, she admitted the only reason why she played softball was so she could stay in shape for basketball,” Finch said. “That is where we started with her. Two years later, she finishes playing for (assistant coach Charlie Ramage and myself) for two seasons and she tells me how much she loves the game. All she really needed to do was to learn the game and after that, she loved the game. I am really hoping Meridian will let her play softball as well. She is a super person and a hard worker. She can do anything she sets her mind to. You find that at schools like this. There are a bunch of good kids. You just have to have time and interest and you have to want to invest in them.”
Finch saw that type of investment as a player when she played at Oak Hill Academy. She played basketball and softball at the school and was molded by the late Stan Hughey, longtime basketball coach at the school.
“He pushed you, he pushed you some more and then he pushed you even more past that,” Finch said. “There was never a day that I didn’t think he didn’t love and care about us. You have to push. Today’s athletes have no idea what all they have to give. You have to show them you care. However, you have to push, push and push some more.”
Finch got degrees at EMCC, the University of West Alabama and Mississippi State. Her playing career was cut short by a knee injury in college. Coaching was always in the back of her mind but it took some serious encouraging from some peers at EMCC for her to give it a try.
“I really fell in love with what we were doing at EMCC,” Finch said. “While I was there, we won the school’s first (Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges) North Division championship in softball. I watched as something was built from the ground up. That is why the challenge at West Point has been so rewarding. You could do this as a tradition-rich program or you could do it here, where everyday you celebrate taking a step in the right direction.”
Finch helped out briefly at Heritage Academy and Oak Hill Academy before taking the West Point job. Her first team managed to make the playoffs. This season, the Green Wave played better softball, even though the end results did not lead to the postseason.
“In the first season, the players were learning the game,” Finch said. “They had been through a new coach for several seasons in a row. This season was different. This year, we focused on different aspects of the game. We learned how to be better in this area or that area. We had several rainouts so the final record was not what we wanted it to be. That is also why we missed the playoffs. We had to play several days in a row at the end of the season to get makeups in and we simply didn’t have the pitching depth.”
Of the seven seniors on the squad, six were offered college scholarships. Four have signed.
Shea Hodnett, Angel Bensend, Alicia Witherspoon and Cherokee Grays have each signed with Coahoma Community College.
Bailey and Hodnett will participate in tonight’s Northeast Mississippi Softball Coaches Association All-Star Fast-Pitch Game at Mooreville High School. First pitch is set for 7 p.m.
Hodnett set a school record with 115 strikeouts in the circle this season. Witherspoon hit .418 with 28 base hits and 18 RBIs. Bailey had a team-best seven home runs and 31 RBIs.
“When we arrived, softball was simply a participation sport,” Finch said. “You were out there to fill time. To take it from that to the point where players are actually signing scholarships. Well, as a coach, that is a little overwhelming. To know, you are making a difference like that. To know, these girls are having a chance to play on the next level and more importantly, get that degree, well it’s exciting. It’s why you do what you do.”
Finch admits there was some fear and trepidation when she made the initial decision to coach. However, once the decision was made, it was full throttle ahead. She knows now she made the right decision.
Several players at West Point are happy that she did.
Scott Walters is a sports writer for The Dispatch. You can email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @dispatchscott.
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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