Betty Whiting wanted to play for the Ida High School baseball team.
But that wasn’t allowed in the 1940s.
It would be nearly three decades before the start of girls high school sports in Michigan.
So, Whiting turned pro.
After graduating from Ida in 1944 she joined the All-American Girls’ Professional Baseball League featured in the movie “A League of Their Own” and played from 1944-52.
“She tried out for the high school baseball team, but they wouldn’t let her play,” said Jeremy Potter, whose “Ida’s Backyard History” class at Ida Middle School did a project on Whiting in 2008.
Potter called her “Ida’s only professional athlete” at the time.
Women have made great strides since Title IX blazed the trail for high girls school sports in Michigan.
Does Whiting still rank as the best female athlete the Region has ever produced?
As part of the celebration of America’s 250th birthday, The Monroe News and its parent company USA Today are celebrating our greatest athletes.
Below is a list of some of the best female athletes in Region history.
Elizabeth Anderson: Won state championships for New Boston Huron in the 400 meters in 2022 and 2023 and the 200 in 2002. Monroe County Region Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year as a sophomore, junior and senior. Currently running for Michigan State.
Kristen Arthurs: Monroe County Region Volleyball Player of the Year in 2007 when she led SMCC to a state championship. Also named Gatorade Michigan Player of the Year that season. Played four seasons at Purdue.
Lindi Bankowski: Monroe County Region Volleyball Player of the Year in 2000 and 2001 and set Bedford records for digs in a season and points in a season and career. Led the Mules to a state championship in 2001. Later played at Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne.
Alex DelPiombo: Starred in volleyball and softball at SMCC, earning Monroe County Region Player of the Year honors in 2007. Finished with 1,754 career assists at Gannon University. Currently the head volleyball coach at Bowling Green.
Meghan Beaubien: Led St. Mary Catholic Central to three straight softball state championships from 2015-17 compiling a 100-11 career record with 1,442 strikeouts and a 0.28 ERA and winning three Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year awards. Went on to star at the University of Michigan where she was the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and Freshman of the Year in 2018.
Michelle Bolster: The 1988 Big Ten Player of the Year for the University of Michigan, led Summerfield to a softball state championship in 1984. Went on to play professionally for the Raybestos Brakettes and served as head coach at Nevada, Indiana and Bowling Green.
Tara Breske: Won Monroe County Region Player of the Year in both basketball (2003) and volleyball (2006) during her career at Bedford. Went on to play basketball four seasons at Bowling Green, scoring 916 points.
Anne Foster: Monroe County Region Softball Player of the Year in 1994 and 1995. Second team All-Mid-American Conference for Central Michigan in 1998.
Ashley Gilson: Named Monroe County Region Girls Athlete of the Year in both 2006 and 2007 and was runner-up for the Michigan Miss Softball Award in 2007. Went on to play softball at Central Michigan.
Victoria Gray: Won Monroe County Region Player of the Year honors four times, three in basketball and once in volleyball. Currently playing volleyball at Indiana.
Laura Hall: Monroe County Region Girls Basketball Player of the Year in 2002 and 2003. Averaged 19.6 points, 11.4 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game when Bedford went 25-1. Went on to play at Michigan State.
Mikayla Haut: The only three Monroe County Region Volleyball Player of the Year led SMCC to state championships in 2019 and 2020. Played four seasons for Fairfield University.
Karen Hubbard: Monroe County Region Player of the Year in 1978 for basketball and 1979 for volleyball. Held the Region record for career points in basketball until 1996.
Jessica Irwin: Monroe County Region softball player in 2007 when she set a Region record with a 0.16 ERA. Inducted into the Madonna University Hall of Fame after setting school records for career strikeouts, wins, saves, shutouts and ERA.
Miranda Johnson: A 2012 Whiteford graduate who was a five-time state champion and three-time winner of the Monroe County Region Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year award. Still holds the Region record in the long jump at 18-9. Participated in track and field and volleyball at Siena Heights and Owens Community College.
Morgan Kaiser: Monroe County Region Girls Athlete of the Year in both 2012 and 2013 after starring in three sports for Flat Rock. Recorded more than 200 career hits for Madonna University softball.
Kiara Kudron: Three-time Monroe County Region Girls Basketball Player of the Year at New Boston Huron, setting a school record with 1,630 career points. Went on to play four years at Gonzaga and three seasons professionally in Europe.
Lauri LaBeau: Monroe County Region Girls Basketball Player of the Year in 1987 and 1988 for New Boston Huron, where she also was a softball star. Played on a national championship basketball team at Alma.
Lindsey Lammers: Nabbed Monroe County Region Girls Golfer of the Year honors in 2008 and 2009 and was co-Player of the Year in basketball in 2010 at Milan. Inducted into the University of Detroit Mercy Hall of Fame for golf and later coached at the school.
Mary Liedel: Set the Monroe County Region record with 1,784 career points in basketball and the Erie Mason school record for points in a game with 54. Played collegiately for Davenport University.
Shelley Looney: A basketball and softball standout at Gibraltar Carlson who scored the game-winning goal for the United States women’s hockey in the gold-medal game against Canada in the 1988 Winter Olympics. Also won a silver medal in 2002.
Danielle Miller: The only four-time winner of the Monroe County Region Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year. Also was a standout in cross country and basketball at Flat Rock. Went on to run at Northwood University.
Shanya Munson: Named Monroe County Region Volleyball Player of the Year in both 1998 and 1999. Started her collegiate career at Kellogg Community College where she was a two-time All-American. Racked up 644 kills in two seasons at Eastern Michigan, then became a professional beach volleyball player and served as an assistant coach at EMU.
Veronica Rood: Became a volleyball starter at the University of Michigan after a standout career at Bedford where she was the Monroe County Player of the Year in 2005 and 2006.
Leigh Ross: A three-sport athlete at Whiteford who went on to set softball records at the University of Toledo for career batting average, hits, stolen bases and total bases, earning a spot in the school’s Hall of Fame. Served as head softball coach at Bowling Green and Syracuse.
Payge Salenbien: One of only three girls to be named Monroe County Region Athlete of the Year twice, taking the honor at Dundee in 2016 and 2017. A standout in volleyball, basketball and track and field.
Ellie Sieler: Ended her softball career at Monroe High on a 79-game hitting streak, the second-longest in state history. Carried a career average of .301 in four seasons at the University of Michigan, earning All-Big Ten honors in 2024.
Bekah Smeltzer: Two-time state champion in cross country for Jefferson and four-time Monroe County Region Runner of the Year. Won Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year award three times. Went on to win two Big Ten cross country titles at Michigan State and coached at Western Michigan, Vanderbilt and MSU.
Melissa Taylor: Summerfield graduate who was the Monroe County Region Player of the Year in both basketball and softball. Named Michigan’s Miss Softball in 1997. Carried a career batting average of .611 in high school and was named Big Ten Player of the Year for the University of Michigan.
Aly VanBrandt: Monroe County Region Softball Player of the Year in both 2022 and 2023. Miss Softball for Michigan her senior year. She set school records for career runs (202), career hits (220), career batting average (.641). Currently playing for Indiana.
Paige Villemure: The Flat Rock product was the Monroe County Region Girls Basketball Player of the Year in 2014 and 2015. Played four seasons of Division 1 basketball at Wayne State.
Taylor Wegener: Played college volleyball at Siena Heights after starring in three sports at Ida. She was the Monroe County Region Girls Athlete of the Year in 2020 and was the Volleyball Player of the Year in 2018 and 2019.
Betty Whiting: The Ida native appeared in 943 All-American Girls’ Professional Baseball League games, drove in 232 runs, stole 198 bases and scored 311 runs.
Amy Wilson: Became a three-sport star at Concordia University in softball, basketball and volleyball after doing the same thing at Ida. Inducted into the Concordia Hall of Fame in 2009. Monroe County Region Basketball Player of the Year in basketball in 1993 and overall athlete of the year in 1994.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Was a professional baseball player the Region’s best female athlete? Vote now!
Reporting by Niles Kruger, The Monroe News / The Monroe News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Niles Kruger, The Monroe News | USA TODAY Network
