The 1998 Spring Hill College softball team will be recognized at the 2023 SHC Hall of Fame Ceremony on Thursday.

In the spring of 1997, under the guidance and push from then Spring Hill College Athletic Director and Baseball Coach Frank Sims, the college embarked on initiating softball on the Hill. Sims had recruited a young energetic coach in Coby Mackin, who went developed a program from scratch. Mackin was without a field, equipment or players, but to her credit and hard work the 1998 inaugural Badgers were a hit. Coby and her assistant Terri McCormick recruited a team, built a field and put a product on the field that was first class. The program won an amazing 43 games in their first season, which still ranks second in program history. The 1998 team set the stage for the 1999 team’s GCAC Championship and third-place finish in the NAIA National Tournament, while also laying the foundation for Spring Hill College softball being one of the most successful programs in Spring Hill College Athletics history.

The ceremony, set for the evening of October 19 at Byrne Memorial Hall, will also feature the enshrinement of fellow Badger alumni Jeff Burg (’94), Joe Imorde (’61), Monica DeSilva Kelsey (’02), Tony Younger (’02), Jennifer Cunningham (’99) and former Softball Head Coach Coby Mackin (1998-2005). The Spring Hill College Athletic Hall of Fame has enshrined the best in Badger athletics since 1972. There have been 150 student-athletes and coaches honored in the SHC Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame members include nationally renowned sports figures such as Nick Bollettieri, who founded IMG Academy, and Dr. Ferdie Pacheco, Muhammed Ali’s fight doctor.

Purchase your tickets for the ceremony here: www.shc.edu/hof

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