Larry Pillow was at the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City.
One duty stood out among the others. He looks at the path of the ball when he hears a bat hit a softball. The ball is his if it clears the fence.
He doesn't want to flip a prized souvenir on eBay. One of the most unique traditions is defended by him. Home run balls are tracked and returned to the families of the players who hit them by the Oklahoma City team.
It's an honor to give it to the people that work out in the field. They may never be back here again.
If you're an NCAA home run champion, you should be able to hit long balls. Alo has to give it to different parts of the family.
The teammate of Alo launched a blast that landed between the fence and the bleachers. Pillow sprang into action after the pro-Sooners contingent celebrated a grand slam. Pillow stood out in his yellow shirt as the security guard pointed towards him. The guard told the fans that the ball was going to Pillow, who was sending it back to the family of the player.
The OU family section is on the third base side. Blair was excited when he found her at that location. Blair collected her sister's home run ball for the second year in a row.
"I think our families -- and especially my little sister -- getting the ball at the games last year and today is cool, because when they can see it, they can achieve it." Blair would like to be here one day as well. It will give you something to look up to. They allow them to do that.
The tradition is beloved by the staff and they hope it stays that way. Koch said she has been working in the first baseman's box for 20 years and it was already part of her duties when she got the job.
Koch likes to hold it in the air. It's fun to hand it to the mom and dad, because everybody always points to where they are.
Most fans are aware of the tradition, and even those who aren't are happy to play along when they learn it's a tradition.
Most of the fans are aware of what's happening. The Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City is a once-in-a- lifetime experience. The ball is more important to them than I am. That is the reason we do it.
Mary Iakopo hit a home run in the first game of the day that almost left the stadium. Anthony Ulibarri, a first time visitor from Colorado, retrieved it and was going to give it to his daughter, who was waiting in the stands.
Anthony Ulibarri from Colorado was getting a lemonade behind left field when Texas' Mary Iakopo launched a bomb that hit the trailer. He's here for a softball tournament in OKC with his daughter, who didn't know yet that he nabbed it. "She's getting this one," he said. #WCWS pic.twitter.com/XoKgP2gcVh
— Dave Wilson (@dwil) June 2, 2022
The ball was traded for a new ball for his daughter by the ushers.
Willie said the fans are accessible most of the time. We can get to them and get the ball. They got the ball and remembered it.
It isn't always so smooth. The ball that went into the temporary bleachers in center field was a grand slam by Oklahoma's Tiare Jennings. They didn't find the ball. Employees at a concession stand behind the bleachers said a young fan went behind some nets and retrieved something that was chalking it up to someone else. Everyone was unsure if anyone could make the swap.
The authorities jumped into action when a fan did not understand the assignment.
There was a home run hit last year. A man jumped between the fence and the stands to grab the ball. He ran into the concession stand and then into the stands. I tried to grab the ball from him. He was stopped by the police after I chased him down.
"He came up over on the first- base side, got up into the stands, tried to run up through the different aisles and got caught right up in Section 10," said Frank Freidhoff, in his 11th year as part of the staff.
The man was escorted out of the stadium after he ate the corn. The ball came from him.
It's a piece of art that can't be duplicated.
The Sooners came into the game with a 55-2 lead. Despite a 13-2 run-rule loss, it was a great day for Lisa Rogers, the mother of Rachel Lewis, who hit a home run.
Lisa doesn't save home run balls. I'm not giving up this.
The eighth home run of the day came in the last game of the day. The game was tied at 2 in the sixth when Oklahoma State outfielder Karli Petty hit a ball into the center-field bleachers for the game-winning run.
A stadium staffer stands in front of the OSU family section minutes later holding the ball up as fans point to Williams after a young fan made a perfect catch.
Williams said that it meant a lot for them to get it for her and her children. Every girl's dream is to be able to work so hard and be able to do that. The little girl caught it while we were sitting over here.
She knows where it's going.
Williams said that every family is different. I have always kept Karli's firsts. She was the first college student to hit a home run. She is in the College World Series. She has every ball for her firsts.
When Pillow gave the ball to the family, Ian said it was moving.
Ian said it was difficult to put it into words. They work their entire lives for it. You have a symbol of hard work that can be kept forever.
Other perks are available. When the delivery is made, the cameras follow the ball and are often right behind the person who is in charge.
"Just being able to get the ball has to mean a lot to me, because I think it's any girl's dream to play on that stage, and just being able to get the ball has to mean a lot to me," she stated. You also get to be on television. That's pretty neat.
Koch, who loves her job so much that she got her husband a job on the first base side for his birthday 10 years ago, said it's a tradition worth protecting.
She said it would continue as long as she's alive. I'm going to work here until I die.
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