It all started years ago on a tee ball field when five-year-old Samantha Dunlap (12) and her brother picked up a tee ball bat. This would set Dunlap on a path to softball which she has played for years and has taught her valuable lessons to take with her through her life.
“He was in tee-ball and we both just wanted to swing together,” Dunlap said. “I made a lot of good memories, made a lot of great friends. It’s competitive, and I love being competitive.”

Coming a long way from tee ball, Dunlap is now on the Varsity high school team. This season in particular has been a good one for Dunlap, with a notable win against Brownsburg and going 3 and 0 in the DAC.
“Mentally, I was just staying focused, keeping everyone’s energy up and keeping the team all together,” Dunlap said. “My favorite memory was definitely Andrean last year when I hit the ball up the middle to drive the runner in for a tiebreaking walk-off.”
When not on the softball field, Dunlap keeps busy as a co-founder of the Girls of Faith Bible study at the school, a member of the anti-bullying club CASS, the athletic council, and the National Honors Society.
“It’s definitely hard at times. Trying to make sure you’re dividing yourself evenly so you’re not dedicating one over the other is hard once you’re in season,” Dunlap said. “I find that it’s easier to handle the Bible study because it’s in the morning and practice is after school.”
Balancing responsibilities is just one of the skills Dunlap will take with her into her future career as a speech-language pathologist. She found her passion for the career through her mother’s friend who specializes in the field.
“I got to know her more and got to see what she got to do every day and I fell in love with it,” Dunlap said. “Being very dedicated, focusing on goals, getting things done, gaining time management, and handling situations where I think quickly on my feet are some of the skills I gained from softball.”
A long way from that tee ball field, Dunlap plans to attend Miami University in Ohio as a speech pathologist major. Though she is not planning on continuing softball in college, it has helped her gain the experience and skills that will follow her to Ohio and on.