Bureau Valley’s Lesleigh Maynard takes a hard hit, will miss senior softball season

When the first practice of the 2025 high school softball season starts on Monday, Bureau Valley senior Lesleigh Maynard will find herself on the sidelines.

The Storm standout will miss her senior season, sidelined by a season-ending knee injury playing for the Bureau Valley girls basketball team on Nov. 22 in the third game of the season.

It was not the kind of hit Maynard had in mind.

Maynard has not taken her last swings, or rather slaps, however. On the very same day of her injury, Maynard, a First-Team Class 2A ICA All-Stater, had signed to play for NCAA Division I Southeast Missouri State to play softball on scholarship.

That day was the best of times and the worst of times for Maynard.

“It’s real weird seeing all the pictures and remembering how it ended,” Maynard said. “I’m really bummed I don’t get to play for Shep (Bureau Valley head coach Dave Shepard) my last year because he literally raised me on softball. He started me slapping and never let me quit, which I really appreciate. It does make it a little easier that I don’t get to play my senior season, but it still kind of sucks.”

Maynard said she first heard from Southeast Missouri State about two or three years ago and liked the program from the start. She said her travel coach, Renee Gass, an assistant coach at Bradley University, played a big role.

“I’ve always liked them because my travel coach went there, too. I really looked up to her and she had a lot of good influence on me going there,” she said.

SEMO is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. The Redhawks, who are off to a 4-4 start, have been picked to win the Ohio Valley Conference championship. They went 28-26 overall and 19-8 in the Ohio Valley a year ago, won the 2024 OVC Tournament and made its third NCAA Division I Softball Tournament appearance.

Slap-hitting has become Maynard’s meal ticket to success, batting .483 with an area-best 38 runs scored and a team-high 17 stolen bases along with seven doubles for the Storm’s 2024 regional champions. She picked it up when she was 10 years old.

“I started playing softball like 8 or 9. I hit righty and then after that I switched over to lefty,” she said. “I’m way better (lefty).”

She said she had some power batting right-handed, “but it’s hard to tell because a lot of people do because it’s coach pitch.”

Shepard introduced Maynard to slap-hitting and she said it wasn’t easy.

“It was so frustrating at first, but he never let me go back righty which I really appreciate,” she said.

Shepard remembers the first conversations while giving her lessons about making the transition from right-handed to become a slap-hitter from the left side.

“I remember when she was around 9 and we came to the conclusion to switch to slapping,” he said. “She was a really good hitter from the right side so I just remember saying if we’re going to do it we have to agree not to switch back. She worked really hard at it and obviously you can tell it paid off.

The Storm shortstop and leadoff hitter was named First-Team Class 2A ICA All-State last season and chosen unanimously First-Team Three Rivers East All-Conference.

Maynard said he’s going to try her hardest to cheer all the girls on.

“This year will be no different except Les will be by my side and cheering her teammates on from the dugout,” Shepard said.

Kevin Hieronymus has been the BCR Sports Editor since 1986. Contact him at khieronymus@bcrnews.com