NEW MADISON – The Tri-Village softball team run-ruled St. Henry 14–2 on a chilly, rainy Saturday morning. Along the way, junior Emma Greer became the school’s all-time career hits leader.
Greer broke the school’s single-season record for hits last year with 59, collected 43 her freshman year, and entered the St. Henry game with 35 hits through 13 games this season.
Her 137 career hits matched the school record set by Mel Werner, who played from 1978–1981. Greer walked in each of her first three plate appearances against St. Henry, and as the Patriots led 13–1 in the top of the fifth inning, she was set to lead off—unaware that her next hit would make program history.
As she approached the plate, third base coach Shane Mead knew something special was coming—but not necessarily the way Greer first envisioned it.
“Emma approached me and asked if she could lead off with a bunt,” Mead said. “She’s a kid who wants to swing the bat, so it would be history-making for her to bunt.”
Frustrated after three straight walks, Greer just wanted to get on base any way she could. St. Henry made a pitching change, and the first pitch was in the dirt. On the second pitch, Greer squared to bunt but pulled back on a pitch down and away.
With a 2–0 count, Greer took the next pitch. What she saw made her eyes light up. She glanced at Coach Mead and shook her head—she no longer wanted to bunt.
After another pitch in the dirt, Greer worked the count to 3–1. She then got the same pitch she had seen earlier and did what she has done so many times in her career: she attacked it. Greer lined a hard shot into right-center field for an easy stand-up double—career hit number 138, breaking the school record that had stood for 45 years and setting a mark that will only climb as the season continues.
Greer glided into second base, unaware she had broken the record. She raised her hands over her head to signal a double, smiling, simply happy she had made the right decision to swing away instead of bunting. She then stole third and later scored on a ground ball by Leah Tamplin for the final run in the Patriots’ 14–2 win.
Building a Contender Again
Tri-Village, the reigning Division VI state champion, graduated just one senior last year, Emma Cantrell, and returned nearly its entire roster. The Patriots are talented and hungry, with clear aspirations of making another deep tournament run.
Greer is one of those key players, and head coach Emily Osborne didn’t hesitate to highlight her impact.
“Emma is one of those self-driven girls who wants to come out and do her best every time,” Osborne said. “She’s always making changes, always wanting to do better, and it’s why we put her first in the lineup—because she gives us belief in ourselves. She goes up there and puts the bat on the ball, and that’s her goal all season long: to go up there and get hits.”
During the preseason, Osborne and her staff ask each player to set individual goals.
“Emma has a lot of them,” Osborne added. “They included breaking the school record for hits, like she did today, and breaking her own records from last year. She’s always pushing to be a little bit better.”
What makes Greer so effective at the plate, Osborne said, is her discipline and ability to adjust.
“She gets the bat on the ball and hits it squarely. She’s able to adjust, time it up, and hit it squarely because she’s very disciplined about making sure she swings at the pitches she wants,” Osborne explained.
Greer’s View from the Box
After the game, Greer talked about her record-breaking hit and the decision to swing away instead of laying down a bunt.
“I saw her (the St. Henry pitcher) throwing the ball in warm-ups in the dirt and slow,” Greer said. “But then after taking a couple of pitches, she threw a meatball pitch, and I was like, if she gives me another one of those… Sure enough, she did, and I turned on it.”
While Osborne praised Greer’s approach, Greer also broke down her own mindset in the batter’s box.
“If the ball is on the outside of the plate, I’m thinking left side of the field. If they’re throwing me inside, I’m trying to take it to the right side,” she said.
For Greer, elite hitting starts with discipline.
“When I go to the plate, I’m very picky. I’m looking for the ball in my zone, which is why I walked three times in the game today,” Greer added.
She also shared the preseason goals she set with Coach Osborne.
“Getting this hit today to break the school record for most hits was one of them,” Greer said.
When informed that the previous record had stood for 45 years, her reaction said it all.
“Seriously?” Emma said in disbelief. “Well, that’s unbelievable, and it feels really good to set a new record.”
Greer isn’t done chasing milestones
“I want to break the record for hits in a season (59, the record I set last year), and I kind of want to go for the home run record for a season too,” she shared.
Currently, Greer and Caley McCarroll are tied with six home runs this season, sharing the lead in the WOAC. Greer hit 12 homers last year, just one shy of the record 13 set by Cam Osborne.
As a sophomore, Greer was named Division VI State Player of the Year, and she has her sights set on that honor again.
Team First, Records Second
Despite her personal goals, Greer remains focused on team success and making another deep postseason run.
“We’ve started to piece it together now, and we’re hitting a lot better as a team,” Greer said. “It didn’t look amazing at first, but we’re putting it together now.”
The Patriots, who finished 30–0 last season, are currently 11–3, opened the year with a 9–7 win over state-ranked Greenville, then dropped a hard-fought 3–2 game to DI Oak Hills and a 6–1 loss to No. 1-ranked DV Shawnee. A tough 17–16 loss to Northmont stung, but since then the Patriots appear to be finding their groove and are now in the driver’s seat for a third consecutive WOAC league title.
In the 14–2 win over St. Henry, senior catcher Hailey Burk led the way with four RBI on two hits. Cam Osborne went 3-for-3 with two RBI.
Elizabeth Poling and Caley McCarroll combined for a three-hitter. Poling would earned the win, throwing three innings with seven strikeouts and allowing one run. McCarroll tossed the final two innings, striking out four and giving up one run.
Embracing the Elements, Building Toughness
Coach Osborne welcomed the challenge of playing through the rain, seeing it as an opportunity to harden her team for tournament time.
“Some of the girls were kind of fussing and worried about playing because of the rain, but we haven’t seen rain up to this point,” Osborne said. “We can play with rain spitting on us. I think it’s important that we work through some of those struggles and have the mindset of, ‘Hey, we’ve done it before.’ This was our opportunity to do it before, so that we have that kind of mentality as we go forward.”
Once the game started, Osborne said, the girls settled in and handled the conditions.
“We want to keep our momentum going forward,” she said. “I think starting off this year there were times we were reflecting on last year and thinking we should be playing where we left off. It doesn’t work that way. We’ve had to work back into having the mentality of battling at the plate and making sure we’re being disciplined too.”
“We stressed not being complacent, and we’re finally putting everything into place by working hard every game,” Osborne concluded.
With Greer etching her name into the record books and the Patriots shaking off early-season bumps, Tri-Village is starting to look like a team ready for another deep postseason run. The rain, the records, and the growing pains are all part of a larger story—one in which the Patriots are again positioning themselves as a program built on discipline, resilience, and championship expectations.
