Good News: Eagles softball players team up with The Exceptionals

By Bill Althaus, Grain Valley News


Molly Jones, who will be a junior pitcher the Eagles staff this season at Grain Valley High School, is a fierce competitor, who also has a softer side, that many Eagles fans rarely have the opportunity to see.

Jones' gentle side is on display Monday evenings at Hidden Valley Park in Blue Springs, where she serves as a buddy for players aged 5 and up who play in the Exceptionals League.

The league is for players who deal with physical, mental or emotional disabilities. The buddies give moms, dads and other caregivers the chance to sit in the bleachers where they can cheer for their loved ones will members of area softball teams help the players hit and run the bases.

“My brother, Ryan, who is 21 years old, has Prader-Willi syndrome (a rare genetic disorder characterized by several developmental and physical abnormalities) and he's been a player in the Exceptionals League for as long as I can remember.

“And the joy on his face when our softball team volunteers at his Exceptional League games tells me how much fun he and his teammates are having,” Jones said.

“We help the players bat and run around the bases, and we're having as much fun as the Exceptionals players. We get as much out our experience as buddies that the players get while playing.

“I got involved because of my brother, but I wish everyone could experience the joy and fun we have during their games.”

The Exceptionals League is free. Every player on every team gets to bat each inning in the two-inning games where no runs or totaled and no scores are kept.

“If you play in the Exceptionals League,” Jones added, “you're a winner. It's all about having fun.”

That's one big reason Grain Valley softball coach Flip Courter got his team involved.

“It's all about fun – and I'm talking about the players and their buddies – they have so much fun,” Courter said. “There are a lot of hugs and smiles during the game.

“I asked our players if they were interested, and we had 12 come out to serve as buddies and I brought my two kids, Casen and Caffrey, and they really enjoyed it too.”

Madison Rust, an all-state player for the Eagles, said it's hard to come up with the words to describe the joy she feels buddying up with a player.

“We all know Molly and Ryan and we can't wait to get out to volunteer at Ryan's Exceptionals League game,” Rust said.

“It's a cool experience. It's a way to serve our community. We get to buddy up with the players while their parents and family members get to watch from the stands.

​“And we have as much fun as the players. It's a game I look forward to every season.”

Members of the Grain Valley High School softball team recently paired up as buddies with players from the Exceptionals, a league for individuals ages 5 and up who deal with physical, mental or emotional disabilities. The Exceptionals League recently wrapped up it's May and June summer season and will begin the fall season in September. Photo courtesy Grain Valley softball program.

Grain Valley High School junior pitcher Molly Jones, center, poses with her 21-year-old brother Brian - in the blue hat - before the start of an Exceptionals League game at Hidden Valley Park, where members of the Eagles served as buddies to the league's players who deal with a variety of disabilities. Photo courtesy Grain Valley softball program.