Bonanza’s Kaempfer among the valley’s top softball players

Spencer Patterson

Thursday, April 29, 1999 | 10:18 a.m.

Bonanza sophomore Katie Kaempfer had a simple reason for becoming a catcher when she began playing softball at age 6.

"I was scared of the ball, and I thought the gear would protect me," Kaempfer recalled. "That's what got me here."

Ten years later and still a catcher, Kaempfer knows what she didn't know then -- that no amount of gear can really protect her from a runner charging down the third-base line.

"That's the best part of being a catcher, getting dirty," Kaempfer said. "Those are the best plays in a baseball or softball game -- when someone runs into the catcher and they hold onto the ball."

In her second year of high school, Kaempfer has established herself as one of the area's top backstops. And her play, both at the plate and behind it, is a major reason Bonanza is on top of the Sunset Division and primed for another postseason run.

"She's very intelligent," Bonanza coach Cheryl Speer said. "She has a lot of common sense, and she's realistic about what her pitchers can and can't do."

Kaempfer came to the Bengals as an experienced freshman last year, courtesy of her years in the local youth softball system. Speer showed confidence in her new catcher from the outset, not only starting Kaempfer but also allowing her to call all the team's pitches.

"She knows the hitters better than I do," Speer said. "In the past, we've given our catchers certain areas to call their own pitches, but Katie is in charge of calling all the pitches now."

Kaempfer welcomes such responsibilities, but she's quick to say her teammates have a big hand in determining what she calls for.

"I've grown up with a lot of the hitters in town, and the ones I don't know other people on my team do know," Kaempfer said. "We have great communication and it works out well that way."

In 1998, Kaempfer helped guide the Bengals to a 12-0 regular-season conference mark, working with a relatively young pitching staff that included another freshman (Christy Carrasco) and a junior (Jessica Smith).

Bonanza capped its season with its most significant accomplishment, a trip to the state title game. In stunning fashion, the Bengals reeled off consecutive wins over perennial 4A juggernauts Silverado, Green Valley and Galena before falling to Reed in the finale.

Despite that success and the return of last year's strong freshman class, Bonanza found itself fighting for respect when the 1999 season opened.

"Part of it is because we still have young kids," Speer said. "But even though the majority of our team is sophomores, they've played more softball than most kids in town."

Indeed, teams who take the Bengals for granted are paying the price. Speer's charges are 22-3 and atop the division again with an 11-1 mark.

Carrasco and Smith have been joined in the Bengals' pitching rotation by junior Kelli Clayton, a transfer from Illinois. Combine that trio and the savvy Kaempfer with the team's potent batting order, and another trip to the state championship game may be within Bonanza's reach.

For now, though, Kaempfer remains focused on her team's next ballgame.

"We're peaking right now, and people are starting to think about (the postseason) more," Kaempfer said. "But we just have to worry about our jobs right now, not what's to come."