When Emily Bobb graduated from college, her love for softball felt diminished.

Not only did she endure three different head coaches in her four years at Grace College, but Bobb had to deal with the loss of her father.

By the time she walked across that stage and received her diploma in 2019, softball just didn’t feel like it was a big part in her life like it used to be.

But when she returned to Seymour, softball coach Jerry Burton presented Bobb with an opportunity to be an assistant coach. A four-year player for the Owls herself, Bobb accepted the position.

Now a few years later as Burton announced his retirement at the conclusion of this past season, Bobb has been named Seymour’s new softball head coach, and more importantly, her love for the game has been reignited.

“I’m extremely excited,” she said. “This program gave so much to me in the four years that I was there, so I find it extremely humbling to have the opportunity to give back to it.”

Bobb graduated from Seymour High School in 2015, where she was named to The Tribune’s all-county team. She had 46 hits that year, along with 12 RBI, 25 runs and a .447 batting average. She was named the 2015 Owls MVP/Offensive Player of the Year/Mental Attitude, all-Hoosier Hills Conference, academic all-state honorable mention and all-district.

She feels her experiences as a player will help relate to the girls on the team today.

“I think also since I’m close in age,” Bobb said. “I graduated college in 2019, so I was in similar positions as a lot of them just a few years ago. I feel like I can relate to them a lot.”

Prior to the 2022 season, Burton had let Bobb know he was going to retire, and he thought she would be a great fit to replace him.

So this was in the works for a whole season, but what wasn’t planned was when Burton suffered a heart attack midway through the year, and Bobb stepped in as the head coach.

“When he had a heart attack, I got to jump in that role a little sooner than I expected to,” she said. “It was a unique situation because I wasn’t officially the head coach, but I had a lot of head coaching responsibilities, so I got a good taste of duties that go into it.”

Burton made a successful recovery and was able to finish out the season in the Owls’ dugout, and then at Seymour’s awards ceremony in late May, he officially announced his retirement to the team.

That allowed the opening for Bobb to become the official head coach of the program — a program that saved her love for softball.

“In the four years I spent playing college softball, I was under three different head coaches, which was also a unique experience. I learned a lot about what I want to be in a coach and what I don’t want to be in a coach,” Bobb said. “By the time my four years were over, my love for softball was a bit burnt out and dwindled, but when Jerry presented the opportunity to coach at Seymour, I knew that it was something that I had to do.”

Bobb continued, “I always loved being a leader, and I always loved softball, and I thought this was a great way to get back into the community post-college. Spending time with those girls was often the highlight of my day, and their passion for the game truly reignited mine, as well.”

Bobb hopes to become a role model for the girls on the team.

“I also think it’s a great opportunity as a female coach,” she said. “You see a lot of men head coaches, and I hope that I empower them and show that it can be a female-dominant position and they, too, can influence young ladies one day.”

Seymour finished this past season 14-10 and 5-2 in the HHC. The Owls lost a talented group of seniors but also have a lot of key players returning.

Bobb is excited for what the roster can look like next spring.

“We definitely have some strong returners coming back, and we also have several freshmen coming in, so I’m very excited for them to get a taste of high school softball,” Bobb said. “We’ve practiced twice a week this summer, and several incoming freshmen have showed up, which has been great.”

Bobb said for every practice, she hands her coaches a practice plan outlining the day’s work.

The 25-year-old aspiring speech-language pathologist likes to be organized, and that’s an added layer she hopes to bring to the team.

“I am a very organized and detail-oriented person,” she said. “I think there’s going to be a lot more structure, and my expectations for intensity and energy are going to be a lot higher. I think that’s something that’s going to be new to them but also help them grow.”

Bobb has played a lot of softball in her life, and she knows what it takes to win and what it’s like to lose.

She hopes her relatability and experience will help her during her tenure as head coach, but most of all, she wants to help every Owl that comes through the program the same way they helped her when she returned to Seymour softball as a coach.

“I think I bring a unique perspective because I’ve been a part of winning programs, I’ve been a part of programs that struggle and I tell this to everyone, my top priority is being a role model for those girls and setting an example and ensuring they leave the program better than they came because of us,” Bobb said.