For weeks, Beckham County and most the nation has been griped with anxious excitement as the NCAA Women’s Softball Tournament has raged on in Oklahoma City.
Naturally, the Oklahoma Sooners and Oklahoma State Cowgirls were being cheered by most local fans. Area bars and restaurants have hosted special watched events as the Sooners made it through each round, inching closer to their fourth national title.
And, of course, a lot of cheers were directed to hard-nosed pitching ace, Kelly Maxwell.
Maxwell, a transfer from OSU last year, has stamina and prowess on the mound that are hard to match.
Last Wednesday, with Skipper Patty Gasso leading the charge, the second- seeded Sooners officially won that fourth title, sweeping the Texas Longhorns.
The final score of the last game was 8-3.
On Thursday, pitcher Kelly Maxwell didn’t just wake up as a member of the reigning queens of college softball and a newly minted national champion. She was also the World Series MVP.
However, while Maxwell’s softball sojourns have already led her all over the country and world, her paternal family roots sprouted in tiny Elk City.
In fact, her paternal grandfather, grandmother, and step-grandfather are all Elk City High School graduates.
And, in that family, Maxwell is not alone as a stand-out athlete.
Her great-grandfather, OC Maxwell, and his brother Pete were Golden Gloves boxers whose athletic endeavors and die-hard mentality are still stuff of local legend. Her great-aunt was one of the first female jockeys.
Her paternal grandmother, now Judy Durland, was a Culver in high school.
“A lot of people also know my brother Ted,” Durland explained. “One of his sons has Culver Electric, and that family has also been successful in sports. We thought Kelly’s brother might play professional baseball. It is just something we have always had in this family.”
While Durland graduated from ECHS in 1971, her first husband — Kelly’s paternal grandfather — graduated in 1966.
“His name is Terry Maxwell, and he lives in Houston now,” Durland explained. “I know he and his wife are just as proud of Kelly as my husband Phil and I are. Phil also graduated from Elk City, and his father was the tv repair man. His name was JT Durland, and his wife was Louise Durland.”
Although Durland and Terry Maxwell moved their family to the Houston area when Kelly’s father, Mark, was young, Durland says the Elk City influence remains two generations later.
“Sure, you see those values in their hard work, their manners, and knowing the importance of family,” Durland said.
Young Kelly Maxwell was everything her grandmother described on the other end of the phone line.
She was quiet and polite, but her joy in her unforgettable week was palpable.
“It has been a dream come true for sure,” Maxwell said. “I want to give credit to our great coach, Patty Gasso and my teammates.
Honestly, there are too many people who came in and helped us, pushed us forward, to list. I do want to give a shoutout to our massage therapist, Emily Frey. She is from Elk City and she keeps us right.”
While Maxwell’s collegiate days are now officially over, she will put on the uniform for Team USA to travel soon to Japan. She also plans on pursuing a career in veterinary medicine.
For more information see the upcoming Western Agriculture Magazine.
