Two-sport, Richmond-Burton grad ready to put sole focus on softball at Wisconsin
SPRING GROVE, Ill. (BVM) — Some might think multi-sport athletes are a thing of the past, but don’t tell Peyton Bannon that. The Richmond-Burton grad had standout high school careers in both basketball and softball while playing for the Rockets. Now, she will take her talents on the diamond to the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Bannon began playing softball around age 8, and shortly after, she took up basketball. She was also a soccer and volleyball player in her youth, but was specifically drawn to softball based on her family history on the diamond.
The 18-year-old grew up watching both of her brothers compete in baseball — one of which still plays collegiately today. Bannon’s parents have always been very sports-oriented as well, influencing her to try out several different athletics when she was young.
By third grade, Bannon began playing travel softball. But it wasn’t until eighth grade, when Bannon joined Chill Gold Softball, that she realized she had a future in the sport beyond high school.
“After making a team like Chill I knew I had a good chance at being able to play in college,” Bannon said. “I decided I was going to be really locked in on softball but I still wanted to play basketball in high school as well.”
Playing with Chill Gold the last five years, Bannon and her team have traveled the country, playing anywhere from Colorado to California. She believes the experience she has gained will help her significantly in her future softball career.
“Going into college, I feel I’m pretty prepared because we’ve been playing against other girls who are going to be playing softball in college,” Bannon explained. “I definitely feel like I’m ready to go play college softball.”
Bannon will be taking her talents on the diamond to UW-Madison, who she first began talking to in her freshman year of high school. After a couple visits in her freshman and sophomore year, Bannon committed to become a Badger and knew it was a perfect fit.
Excited to announce that I have verbally committed to continue my athletic and academic career at the University of Wisconsin! Huge thanks to all my coaches, family, and teammates who have helped me throughout the process. Can’t wait to be a Badger‼️❤️ #GoBadgers#OnWisconsin pic.twitter.com/JAibRkm9k7
— Peyton (@PeytonBannon) April 23, 2018
“At that point, I knew I wanted to play in the Big Ten, I loved Wisconsin, I loved the coaches, and I just always wanted to go there,” Bannon said. “I always like how Wisconsin was close to home. The campus is amazing and whether it’s sports or academics, Wisconsin is just good at everything.”
Bannon also considered Iowa State and Illinois during the recruiting process. Despite the uncertainty that looms with college athletics due to COVID-19, Bannon is excited to get started at Wisconsin and hopes she can have an impact on her team right away.
“I’m really excited to go in and start playing for these coaches,” Bannon said. “I hope I can help the team win games and help them to continue to improve.”
Helping her team improve is something Bannon did plenty of in her four years at Richmond-Burton Community High School, both on the softball diamond and on the hardwood.
In softball, Bannon became a special player for the Rockets. The 18-year-old had a career batting average over .500, with nearly 100 hits and a double digit home run total. But unfortunately, she would only play three years with her senior season canceled this past spring.
“It was disappointing because I never thought my last high school game would be last year,” Bannon said. “I was really excited for this year and it was definitely sad realizing I played my last high school game and didn’t even know it.”
However, Bannon did at least get to enjoy her senior season of basketball at Richmond-Burton. On the hardwood, Bannon was also a force. Beginning on varsity her sophomore season, the Rockets’ star quickly learned from the senior leadership on her team. By the time she was a senior, Bannon took off, scoring a single-season program record 663 points.
“From the beginning of the season I just always had a scoring mentality,” Bannon said.
The strong senior season also led Bannon to become the program’s all-time leading scorer on the hardwood with 1,226 career points. This accomplishment was something Bannon was looking forward to achieving throughout her senior season.
“At the beginning of my senior season, I knew I had an opportunity to break it,” Bannon said. “When it happened, it was something different for me because I had never focused on basketball more than softball before. To do something like that in a sport that’s not technically my main sport was really cool.”
Bannon received several accolades throughout her high school athletic career. Some which she regards highest are winning the Northwest Herald Female Athlete of the Year — recognizing her as the best female athlete in McHenry County — and being named an all-state player in softball in both her sophomore and junior years. She also won numerous team awards for basketball in her senior season in addition to being named conference player of the year.
An all-around athlete, Bannon is proud she was able to play multiple sports in high school and have such great careers in both. She hopes she left a lasting impact on Richmond-Burton and also hopes she sent a message to the younger athletes coming in behind her.
“I hope I showed people that it’s possible to be good in more than one sport,” Bannon said. “If you work hard enough, you can meet your goal.”
As Bannon heads from Illinois to Wisconsin, she remains undecided on what she might want to do career wise someday. However, a future in the sport of softball after college is likely, whether that is playing professionally or coaching back home.
“After my four years if I feel like I’m not done yet I could see myself trying to go pro which would be really cool,” Bannon said. “But if not I definitely want to coach, even in my summers during college. I would like to coach for my travel program that I played for and definitely want to do coaching after my playing career.”
Bannon has a bright future ahead with the Wisconsin Badgers, but knows she would not be where she is today without the support she has received, whether it is from family, coaches, or teammates. She is thankful for it all, and there is little doubt that she will continue making everyone proud while playing collegiately.
“My family is the main reason I am where I’m at today,” Bannon said. “They have always supported me to do my best and do better. My whole life has always been a competition with my older brothers and that has always given me a winning mentality. My coaches have also been super supportive and have developed me into who I am today.”
