Iron Horses' softball team working to improve in second season as varsity team

Philip Simmons High School softball coach Mallory Bendig admits her team will take small steps as the Iron Horses begin their second season as a varsity team. But she promises those steps will be important ones as the team builds for the future.

The Iron Horses won two games last spring, four if you count two forfeits against Garrett Tech, and Bendig hopes for modest success from a team that is very young with three seventh-graders, an eighth-grader and three freshmen.

“We’re not trying to win the state championship,” Bendig said. “We’re not trying to win the region. What we’re trying to do is show improvement.”

The Iron Horses, basically, still are a junior varsity team competing at the varsity level. That makes life interesting – and tough – when the Iron Horses play against programs that are solid and have a full complement of players on the roster.

“Next year, we will have girls who will range from freshmen to seniors,” Bendig said. “The big step will be when we have two teams – varsity and junior varsity. We have a lot of talented young players in the middle schools. But for now, when we play against teams with juniors and seniors, it makes everything interesting.”

Bendig and Iron Horse football coach Eric Bendig are cousins. They have classrooms across the hall and often share stories and advice about starting a sports program from the ground up.

“We bounce ideas off each other all the time,” Mallory Bendig said. “The thing we talk about most is coaching the players where they are. You don’t want to set expectations too high. We have players who never played softball. We have players who have never been on a team. Sometimes, they need for you to believe in them, for you to be there for them.”

Bendig, who graduated from Appalachian State, coached at a couple of high schools in North Carolina before moving to the Lowcountry. She coached at Wando before accepting the job – and challenge – at Philip Simmons.

“Last year, we had 15 girls try out and we had 15 players on the roster. We kept everybody,” Bendig said. “Last year, we beat North Charleston and Burke and made the first round of the playoffs. This year, we hope to win one or two more games. So far, the pitching and manpower is better.”

The 2019 roster hasn’t been finalized just yet because there are some players from the basketball team who are still going through tryouts. Their successful mindsets could be a boon to the rest of the team.

“We want to keep as many girls as possible and make them fall in love with the sport,” Bendig said.

The team should be solid up the middle.

Sophomore Kendall Hammett begins the season as the most promising season after an offseason that included lessons.

Two juniors should provide leadership. Riley Anderson transferred from Wando and will play softball for the first time this year. She plays catcher.

Shortstop Tamia Heyward is the leader in the infield and makes powerful contact at the plate. She also runs the bases well.