50 years later, national tournament brings ‘amazing’ memories for La Jolla Bobby Sox

In 1975, members of the then-fledgling Bobby Sox softball team in La Jolla formed an unbreakable bond when they made it to the All Stars National Championship Tournament.

Fifty years later, a handful of original Bobby Sox players gathered for a reunion Aug. 17 at the home of La Jolla resident Barbara Doren, whose daughter was on the tournament team.

“I love these girls, and it was a fun time for Bobby Sox,” Doren said.

The program had formed two years earlier and was coached by Doren’s husband, Wally. Before  the Bobby Sox, there was the Ponytail League, a sister of the Pony leagues of La Jolla Youth Baseball. Teams were sponsored by local businesses and residents and coached by volunteers.

Being such a new program, “we didn’t think the team would make it to nationals,” Doren said. “You have to beat the local teams first … and when we did, it was so exciting. It was also exciting to think we had gotten that far in two years.”

50th anniversary

Reflecting at the reunion, Kim Batutias (née Creamer) said her time in Bobby Sox “was an amazing time to grow up” in that “women’s sports had not yet arrived, but we had this amazing group of gritty young girls that came together. A lot of us didn’t look like athletes — some of us were feminine and dainty — but we kicked butt.”

“We had this amazing teamwork and parents that came to our games, so it was such a special time,” she added. “I think that’s why we’ve kept in touch … we have these amazing memories. I treasure those times.”

Margaret Thum Miller agreed. “We had the most magical few years … and a group of girls that went from sixth grade through high school playing together.”

She was “thrilled to reminisce” at the reunion, she added.

Elizabeth Korevaar, who went by “Biffy” at the time, said coach Wally Doren “changed my life” in that “he spent 45 minutes with me one day” teaching her how to swing.

In her adult life, she played softball for her company’s team and coached tennis.

“I still hear his voice teaching me,” she said. “He coached us like we were young adults rather than kids. … That changed all of our lives. That’s why we’re here. To be treated with respect in the 1970s was very meaningful.”

The qualifying game

For some players, the night they won the game that qualified them to go to the nationals was as exciting as the big tournament itself.

In the ninth inning with the bases loaded, Amie Rodriguez (née Johnston) was watching her teammate bat with nervous anticipation. Leaning against the dugout rail, she reached into the rafters and felt something under her hand.

“I swear this is true, I found a lucky penny,” Rodriguez said in 2015 at a reunion to mark the 40th anniversary of the tournament. “I thought to myself, ‘We’re going to win, I just know it.’”

Just then, her teammate hit a home run and the game was theirs.

Kathe Beardsley (née Doren), daughter of Barbara and Wally, said both her parents were scheduled to attend the Las Patronas Jewel Ball that night, but her father stayed behind to celebrate with the team.

“We were all on cloud nine, eating pizza at this local pizza parlor, singing our team song, which was ‘Love Will Keep Us Together’ by Captain and Tennille,” Beardsley recalled at the 40th-anniversary reunion. “On our way home, we realized my dad didn’t have the house key, so we had to go to the Jewel Ball in our uniforms — cleats and all — to get the key from my mom.”

The big games

To get to the national tournament, held annually in Buena Park, the team rode in a van (listening to “Love Will Keep Us Together” all the while) and stayed in hotels.

“I remember the excitement of staying in a hotel with the girls and playing long games that went into the night,” Beardsley said. “I also remember our managers and chaperones telling us to go to bed early and not eat junk food. There were teams from everywhere, so we got to meet girls from across the country.”

After day games, night games and extra-inning games, the girls went home in eighth place in the national competition.

During the tournament, some trickery helped the La Jollans against unfamiliar competitors, said Crista Hubbard (née Breihan).

“We knew a lot of the San Diego teams already, but for the teams we didn’t know, we used some tricks when it really counted,” said Hubbard, the catcher. For example, she said, during one game, “Coach Doren told me to act like I can’t throw and misthrow, so when they got on base and would try to steal, I would throw them out.”

During another game, the team relied on the chaperones to keep their spirits up when things weren’t looking good.

“I got kicked out of one of the games because the [umpire] was making bad calls and I told him ‘You’ve got a banana in your ear,’” recalled chaperone Wanda Creamer, wife of coach Tom Creamer. “All the girls were laughing, but they were proud at the same time.”