Philadelphia assistant softball coach Kacie Roberson instructs Kamryn Moore during the Lady Tornadoes’ state semifinal series against Eupora last week.

Kacie Roberson thought she was done with softball when she relinquished her coaching ties two years ago to become a counselor with the Stone County School District. 

Fifteen years as a head coach carried Roberson to numerous schools around the state, but this summer, shortly after she accepted a position as the seventh- through 12th-grade counselor for the Philadelphia School District, she finally threw away her coaching gear and closed that chapter of her life.

“I knew that once I moved into the counseling world I would probably have to give it up,” said Roberson, a former Clarkdale and college softball standout said. “I missed it tremendously. I would go back and watch my girls who were playing in college, and the girls I coached who were still playing at Forest County, or even the girls I coached at Perry Central. I still enjoyed the game; I loved watching it. I would try to let the girls know just because I was not their coach anymore, I do hope they still succeed and do good things.”

As Roberson, 39, went through the interview process at Philadelphia, one of the first things superintendent Lisa Hull, Ph.D., mentioned was the need for a new softball coach. But Roberson maintained she was content in her current role. Later in the summer, Roberson was made aware of the need for a slow-pitch assistant to new head coach Frank Hutton. She, however, figured the school would fill the role in due time.

A visit to a Lady Tornadoes softball practice this summer was the confirmation Roberson needed to know something bigger was calling her back to the diamond.

“He had nobody — there was nobody out there,” said Roberson, who coached locally at Enterprise and Quitman. “I was like, ‘OK, God, is this your way of telling me (I’m) going to coach?’” “It was, and I said, ‘OK. Let’s do it.’”

Roberson joined Hutton’s coaching staff three days before Philadelphia’s first game. Jumping back in after two years away was challenging at first, but Roberson said her new players made the transition easier.

“The girls at Philadelphia are such good girls,” Roberson said. “They work hard; they’re competitive; they’re athletic. Even in the classroom they excel, and it was a good season.”

Philadelphia went 19-5 this fall and reached the South State round of the MHSAA Class I playoffs before eventually falling to Eupora just one series shy of the state championship round. For Roberson, the Lady Tornadoes’ level of talent this year was evident from Day 1. 

“When I first saw them practice and saw the athletic ability we had, I was amazed,” Roberson said. “And then to see that the girls were willing to work hard to get even better, knowing that they were already that athletic and that competitive, it was good. To see them succeed was rewarding.”

Roberson said her return to the profession has been enjoyable, due in part to the fulfillment she receives from mentoring her young players. While the wins are surely nice, Roberson said her joy comes from other aspects of the game.

“Watching the girls succeed,” she said. “And I’m not just talking about on the softball field, either, because softball and sports teach you so much. There are so many life lessons that you can carry on throughout your life once you get out of high school and on to college — that’s why I do it. Of course, I love the competition, but I can have competition playing coed ball on the weekends or something. But watching those kids realize their world beyond high school ball, that’s what keeps me going.”

When asked if she’s since revised her plan to include becoming a head coach in the near future, Roberson said, with a laugh, “All is can say is, only the good Lord knows. He’s the only one who knows. We can always say we think we know what we want, and then he’s up there laughing and says, ‘Nope, this is what I’ve got for you.’”