'Passion for the game': Penrod up to the task as Yorktown softball's new head coach

MUNCIE, Ind. — Yorktown's new head softball coach is Jeremy Penrod, the team's assistant coach since 2018 and a longtime Indiana travel softball coach.

Penrod replaces Jeff Berger, who coached the Tigers from 2015-21 and led them to an IHSAA state championship appearance in 2019 before retiring this past summer. Penrod called Berger a "mentor" for the past three years, and he was eager to take the reins when the job became available.

"Super excited, glad to have the opportunity," Penrod said. "I've either coached these girls or coached against these girls since they were probably 8 or 9 years old, so I know them pretty well."

Although Penrod was a candidate from the beginning, Yorktown Athletic Director Paul Heidenreich still conducted a formal hiring process and interviewed several candidates both within and outside the program.

Heidenreich liked Penrod's familiarity with the program and the success he enjoyed coaching the Indiana Revolution, which he helped lead to four state championships and a national championship, and the Indy Dreams Gold (2018-20) travel teams.

But an additional separating characteristic was Penrod's experience in education. He has taught at the Muncie Area Career Center since 2013 and was named “Teacher of the Year” by the MACC in 2019, and Heidenreich said it's a "bonus" to hire coaches with teaching experience.

"His excitement, his enthusiasm, his strong educational background, his knowledge of softball, his goals and vision of where he'd like to see this program grow under his leadership," Heidenreich said. "Those were all selling points for us."

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Penrod also recognizes the different responsibilities of leading a high school program compared to a travel team. He said that while travel softball allows coaches to collect talent, make their own schedule and play in tournaments of their choosing during an elongated period of time, the high school experience is completely different.

Not only is the season more condensed, fast-paced and the schedule mostly set in place, but those involved are playing and coaching for more than just the team. Penrod said the jersey is akin to "wearing a community," and with that comes the added responsibility to uphold the standards of Yorktown High School and being a student-athlete.

Penrod quit coaching travel softball in 2020 to focus on the high school level, partly because he enjoys it more and also because it's a taller task. After three years of seeing Berger do it the right way, Penrod believes he ready to carry the torch.

"When you look at traditional high school, those communities get galvanized through their sports teams," Heidenreich said. "It's not about one particular girl, one particular player, it's about the team of Yorktown. In terms of his goals, vision and handling that responsibility, I think we've hit a home run with him doing those things."

Penrod will be joined by Sonya Willis, who is elevated from JV assistant to varsity assistant, in his pursuit of continued success for the program. The Tigers were one of the area's best teams under Berger and have enjoyed extensive winning over the past decade, and Penrod acknowledges there's pressure that comes along with those expectations.

Yorktown went 24-6 last season before losing a heartbreaking 1-0 10-inning game to Guerin Catholic in the sectional tournament. While the team graduated some foundational pieces, experience also returns in seniors Macie Dowd and Alanah Jones, juniors Lexy Morris and Jenna Sylvester, sophomores Caitlin LaFerney and Ava McNally and others.

"We'll be a little younger than we have been in the past," Penrod said. "But the growth that the JV had last year and the talent we have coming back — we have high standards and I know the girls are going to have some pretty big goals. I think we're going to be pretty competitive."

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Penrod said he'll maintain Berger's style of game planning and in-game strategy but will be different in his preparation. Winning remains the goal, especially to come out atop the county and conference, yet Penrod keeps in mind the bigger picture.

"What's successful to me is seeing girls go out and having a good time, growing, getting better and being excited about playing a game they love to play," Penrod said.

"What I want our kids to have is a good experience," Heidenreich said. "I want them to get better, challenge themselves, work hard, leave it all out on the (diamond), and at the end of the year and see what happens. And if you do that and you win nine games or you win 29 games, I think that's successful in my eyes."

Penrod was willing, however, to wait a year before taking the job. His daughter, Kate, is a senior softball player at Delta, so he asked her if she wanted him to delay taking the gig until she graduated.

Kate, instead, is excited to play against her father and someone who coached her for 12 years. Penrod said it will be especially tough if the two rivals meet in sectional play, but it will be an interesting experience nonetheless.

The rest of Penrod's friends, family and former players have been supportive of his new job as well, wishing him good luck as he hopes to continue Yorktown softball's winning tradition.

"A lot of excitement, a lot of phone calls, a lot of text messages," Penrod said. "They know my passion for the game and they kind of knew what I wanted to end up getting into, so I think they were just excited for me for the opportunity."

Gus Martin is a sports reporter at The Star Press. Follow him on Twitter @GusMartin_SP, and contact him at gmartin@gannett.com or 765-729-4742.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Jeremy Penrod up to the task as new Yorktown softball head coach