In her senior year, the All American Red Heads came to play in Erksine. The girls team got to play in a preliminary game, prior to the men’s team playing the Red Heads. After the girls game, the coach, Orwell Moore went up to her and asked if she ever thought of playing basketball and gave her the address of the owner of the team.
About 10 days later, a red white and blue edged envelope showed up in the mail box inviting her to join the team the following October.
7 players would be on the team, including the coaches wife, Lorene as the team would travel to all 48 states during the 1952-3 season.
She would travel around the country in a DeSoto station wagon, playing games every day, with two on Sunday. The only exception was Christmas Day.
Her teammates would call her Dody as they played against men’s teams wearing green uniforms, highlighted in white, to contrast their red hair. Being the shortest member on the team at 5’7, she would also be involved in the piggy-back trick by getting on the shoulders of another player, catching the pass and putting the ball in off the backboard while none of the men could reach her.
Her favorite moment was when the team headed back to Erskine and they played in front of everyone she knew, family and friends.
She was also offered the opportunity to play for the famous Grand Rapids Chicks softball team. This was the team from which the movie “A League of their Own” was based on.
Dody played for 3 seasons before leaving the team and heading to college. Looking back on her days with the Red Heads made her realize she could do anything she wanted if she set her mind to it.