Costantino Signs with OCC

July 14, 2008 at 7:52 am | In General

Costantino will play for OCC
By Justin Hatten
Published: Wednesday, July 2, 2008 4:43 PM CDT
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After undergoing elbow surgery last winter, Bianca Costantino thought her softball career might be finished.

However, thanks to hard work and determination, Costantino came back stronger than ever for her senior season with the Olney Lady Tigers, hitting a team-high .354 (29-for-82) with 20 singles, five doubles, two triples, two homers and 13 RBI.

Not only were those numbers good enough to earn her All-Apollo Conference first-team honors, but a college scholarship as well. Costantino inked a letter of intent Tuesday afternoon at East Richland High School to play for new head coach Nick Short and the OCC Lady Blue Knights starting next season.

“This feels great,” said Costantino, who plans to major in law enforcement. “I wasn’t even sure if I would be able to play this year with my injury. I want to thank my family, my coaches and my team. We had a great season and it was a blast. This gives me a chance to keep in touch with my family and still do what I love, which is play softball.”

Costantino played an instrumental role in helping turn the Lady Tigers’ program around. Following back-to-back 10-23 seasons in 2006 and 2007, Matt Powell’s club won a school-record 17 games last spring.

“I’m really excited for Bianca and the opportunity she is getting,” Powell said. “I’m glad she is staying close to home so we will still get to see her play. As soon as she got cleared after the surgery, she wanted to come in and start working out right away. Bianca hung in there and I’m really happy for her.”

Short, a native of Hamilton, has been at OCC for two years and was an assistant under former head coach Rick Porter.

Although he’s still busy wrapping up his first recruiting class, Short has already signed 11 players this offseason, including Costantino and recent West Richland High School graduate Cally Hubbell.

Throw in seven returnees and the future looks bright for the Lady Knights.

“It’s great anytime you can sign a local girl who wants to play,” Short said. “When building a program, that’s where I want to look first. Our goal is to be competitive every game, the whole game, and Bianca is gonna help us out, no doubt about it.”

Short wants to model his program after Dennis Conley’s. The longtime Blue Knights’ skipper will enter his 29th year at OCC with 1,006 victories, 25 straight winning seasons and a field named after him.

“Dennis has been absolutely great in breaking me in,” said Short, who’s played competitive fast-pitch softball since he was 10. “I’m looking forward to making connections with the community and getting things pointed in the right direction. We just want to compete and play hard each and every day.”

Jessica VanDyke has spent the last eight seasons as an assistant coach for the Lady Tigers. After finishing her softball career at ERHS, VanDyke played two years at OCC and is happy to see Costantino receive the same opportunity.

“Bianca is just a good girl and a bundle of energy,” VanDyke said. “It’s always nice to see one of our players get to the next level. Bianca will definitely help them out. It’s sad to see her go but we’re very proud of her.”

News and notes: Costantino and incoming senior Hannah Feutz both received 2008 Decatur Herald & Review All-Area honorable-mention accolades. Feutz went 16-10 during her junior campaign with 184 strikeouts in 174 2/3 innings of work. She compiled a 2.40 ERA.

Along with his coaching duties, Short also teaches Biology, Anatomy and Physiology at OCC.