Before this season, when anyone – players, umpires or fans – needed to relieve themselves at Viking games on the Hillsboro campus, they had to use what I always consider the last resort before standing behind a tree. Porta-potties are essential to provide sanitation at large events, like concerts and festivals, but they should be far removed from college campuses. To me, the only good thing about wearing a mask is when I go into a plastic outhouse.
So imagine my joy when I got to Jeffco’s home softball game against Three Rivers College of Poplar Bluff on April 15 and saw the finished product of Tony Cook’s labor of love. Cook, head coach of the Vikings, is also an associate professor for the college’s Area Technical School. He and his students built a new clubhouse for the Vikings in August. The project was delayed for about six months when COVID-19 shut down most activities at the school.
“We finally got rid of the porta-potties,” said Cook, who’s well into his 15th season as head coach. “It’s cleaner and more sanitary. I’m glad for not just our team but for the public.
“We’re hoping this looks more like a collegiate facility. We want to do more improvements, but this is a good start-up to the big plan.”
That plan includes a retaining wall and landscaping behind the building, an entrance gate and the transition of the parking lot nearest the stadium into a batting-practice facility. The work completed so far cost $90,000, which Cook said was under budget. The players now have a new locker room, a washer and dryer to clean their uniforms and most importantly, a first-class collegiate facility that will no doubt help Cook recruit future players. He and the students performed every aspect of the construction, including plumbing, electrical, dry wall work and painting.
Sophomore outfielder Kelsey Boyd, a 2019 Hillsboro graduate and member of the 2018 Hawks team that finished fourth in the state in Class 4, is batting .329 with a team-leading 10 home runs.
“It’s like (NCAA) D-1 material,” Boyd said of the Vikings’ new digs. “You can have fun in it. You can change in it. You can watch TV. We’ve got a little fridge in there. It’s a nice place. The dugouts weren’t the prettiest. I don’t like porta-potties.”
Cook has done just about everything – including washing uniforms – to foster a winning environment. And it’s worked; through 14 seasons his career record is 576-185, a winning percentage of .757. After splitting a pair of games against Three Rivers (24-1 going into the game and ranked 15th among NJCAA Division 1 schools last week) the Vikings were 22-10 overall, 11-1 in the Missouri Community College Athletic Conference and 7-3 in NJCAA Region 16. The games against the Raiders counted as conference and Region 16 games.
An alumnus of Herculaneum, Cook remembers the football team ringing the Blackcats’ victory bell after a big win. Now there’s a much smaller version in Jeffco’s new locker room that brings the tradition alive there.
“The girls love it because after games we have a tradition now, where we announce the first and second player of the game and we have a bell for them to ring,” Cook said. “The logo says, ‘Be the one.’ And (they can’t) ring it unless they’re the one. They love that because they want to be the one to ring the bell. To do that, they have to put the work in every day and show it on the field.”
Speaking of Herculaneum athletes, two former Blackcats helped their
Jeffco teams win games on April 15.
Jordan Duncan, a 2020 graduate, threw the first pitch for the baseball team’s doubleheader against State Fair Community College of Sedalia at 1 p.m. About 90 minutes later, he came off the mound with an 8-0 shutout win, in which he contributed a hit and a run batted in. In the 13-5 second-game loss, he smashed a three-run home run in the first inning.
As I watched the baseball game, the softball team got underway against Three Rivers at 2 p.m. Before long, I heard the crowd erupt and saw Vikings rounding the bases to the sound of the Gjallarhorn. Emma Vaughn, also a 2020 Herky grad, swatted two home runs in Jeffco’s 7-3 win over the Raiders.
When I told Vaughn about Duncan’s exploits, she said, “Really, that’s awesome for Jordan.”
I asked Vaughn what she’s learned most about herself going from high school to college athlete.
“I’ve learned a lot about struggling,” she said. “I was nervous playing college softball, but I think I handled my nerves today.”