Connor Proctor
MIDDLETON – Barney Schultheis’ admiration for softball took a hold of him when he first met Connor Proctor nine years ago.
Schultheis, who became a three-time state champion softball coach at Boulder City High School in Nevada nearly 30 years ago, was visiting close friends when he saw the third grader pitching to her father – who was an acquaintance of his – in the yard next door.
Schultheis saw something he liked, so he walked across the lawn.
“At that time, for a little girl, I thought she was pretty good – they don’t know the mechanics and everything,” said Schultheis, who is also a former football coach at Fulton High School. “I said, ‘I’ll tell you what we’re going to do. Dad, bring her over next Sunday and we’ll get started.'”
The 86-year-old Schultheis and Proctor, who now pitches at Fulton, have worked together every summer since their initial meeting, and his presence has helped the senior blossom into the most decorated pitcher in school history.
Proctor, who is committed to play at Lansing Community College, picked up her 1,000th career strikeout this past weekend and now has 1,030 to her name, which, according to the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s record book, puts her in the top 30 all-time. Her 345 strikeouts this year is a single-season school record, breaking her own milestone from last season.
“I didn’t even know it was approaching until the day before,” Proctor said of reaching 1,000 career strikeouts. “I’ve never actually thought about it (before). It’s a cool accomplishment to have now that I got it.”
Last week, it was Proctor who stepped into the pitcher’s circle against Laingsburg when the Division 4 honorable mention Pirates clinched their first ever Central Michigan Athletic Conference title.
Coming into her senior season, with only four returning starters, Proctor said she wasn’t sure how her team would fare. But as the year progressed, she noticed the potential to do something special.
“It’s always a goal, you want to win every game, but it wasn’t like we had to win the league,” said Proctor, who has a handful of no-hitters this season. “But as we kept winning I was like, ‘Oh, we have a chance at this.’
“We’ve had some good teams in the past, and to be the first team to win it is very exciting.”
Coach Chris Barrus said he relied heavily on Proctor, who is 24-5 this year (a single-season school record for wins), to start the season as his players got acclimated to their new roles. Her confidence, he said, is what helped the team get the ball rolling.
“Her being in the circle just gives other girls confidence because they know what she’s going to do every game,” the second-year coach said. “She can, in a sense, hide certain flaws your team has. As long as you can get a couple of runs for her, you know what she’s going to do. She’s going to shutdown the other team for the most part.”
Senior Chloe Fife has been Proctor’s catcher since third grade, and she said her teammate’s “hard work and humbleness” have been motivators for the team. Fife added that she doesn’t have to say too much to Proctor during ball games and usually just tries to guide her when needed.
Fulton will need the longtime friends to be in sync more than ever next week, as the Pirates chase their first district championship in school history.
“We’re really excited,” Proctor said. “We have some good teams in our district, and it will be tough to win it. But we know we can beat the teams, we have, but we just have to come out and play our best.”
Contact James L. Edwards III at jledwards@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @JLEdwardsIII.