GREENVILLE — The Newland name has long been synonymous with softball excellence, and on Saturday, April 11, that family legacy reached a remarkable milestone.
With Greenville’s win over the Ansonia Lady Tigers at Lady Wave Stadium at Stebbins Field, Hall of Fame coaches Greg and Jerrod Newland combined for 1,000 career victories. Greg Newland, Jerrod’s father, recorded 400 wins during his distinguished coaching career at Springfield South, while Jerrod collected his 600th career fastpitch softball win to bring the father-son total to four figures.
“It means I have an awful good coach for a son,” said Greg Newland. “Forty-six years for me of making fast pitch softball just as important as any sport in the school, certainly not a back seat to anyone, and my 46 years and Jerrod’s 23 years and it looks like it has worked out pretty good.”
For the Newlands, softball has never just been a game. It has been a family tradition that has stretched across generations.
Greg Newland’s daughter, Sharah Newland, built a stellar career of her own at Springfield South, where she became a four-time First Team All-Ohio selection and set numerous high school pitching records before going on to play Division I softball at Northern Kentucky University.
“Her name is in the Ohio High School record book many times for pitching, so it certainly has been a family affair,” Greg Newland said. “At one time, the Springfield News and Sun ran this huge article on Mother’s Day, and it had my career, Jerrod’s career, and our daughter’s, and it was just a really neat Mother’s Day gift.”
(Gaylen Blosser photo)
Among Sharah Newland’s notable OHSAA accomplishments were 27 wins in a season in 2002, 20 shutouts in 2001, 62 career shutouts, 83 consecutive shutout innings in 2001, 10 consecutive shutout games in 2001, a season earned-run average of 0.08 in 2000, a career ERA of 0.15, 1,097 career strikeouts, three perfect games in 2002, and 22 career no-hitters, including three consecutive no-hitters in 2001.
The roots of Jerrod Newland’s coaching success reach back to childhood.
“They all have grown up with it, all the kids,” Greg Newland said. “Jerrod was keeping my scorebook when he was eight years old, so that’s how far back that goes.”
The softball and baseball tradition is now extending into yet another generation. Greg Newland recently watched his grandson, Drew Newland, son of Jerrod Newland, earn his first varsity pitching win as a freshman for the Greenville Green Wave baseball team.
“They just all grow up with it, and Drew got his chance the other day at varsity, and my goodness, go out and get a win and couldn’t be prouder of him,” Greg Newland said.
Behind it all has been Sue Newland, Greg’s wife and Jerrod’s mother, whose support has been central to the family’s decades-long run.
“It has been a family affair for the last 46 years,” Greg Newland said. “She runs the show,” he added with a chuckle. “She’s a wife, a mother, a grandmother, a fan, and she wears all those hats very well.”
For Jerrod Newland, milestone win No. 600 was another reflection of the many people who have built Greenville’s highly successful softball program over the years.
“Look back at the longevity of this thing and it’s been awesome ride, and love it,” Jerrod Newland said.
“A lot of good people, a lot of good families, a lot of good coaches, a lot of people have been through the program,” he added. “It’s been fun and the kicker is you surround yourself with good people and great things happen.”
“I can’t thank the community enough because that’s what it’s all about,” Coach Newland concluded.
The Newland family’s milestone carries added Hall of Fame significance. Jerrod Newland was inducted into the Ohio High School Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2018. He joined his father, Greg Newland, who was inducted in 2008 following his successful career at Springfield.
Together, the two Hall of Fame coaches have built one of Ohio’s most impressive family legacies in high school softball — 1,000 wins, countless memories, and a tradition that continues to grow.
