PENNY CLAYTON
Softball, 1978-80
Inducted May 1, 1988

Penny Clayton was a key ingredient in the long and successful run of softball under the guidance of coach Kay Hunter. A righthanded pitcher, Clayton pitched for two SMS teams which won Missouri AIAW state championships in her three seasons with the Bears, and she was also a standout on two ballclubs which claimed regional titles. The Bears were seventh in the AIAW World Series in 1978 in a banner 31-7 season. The Bears won the state but not the regional in a 27-10 season in 1979 and got back to the national tourney for a ninth-place finish in the 1980 campaign as SMS posted a 26-12 season record. At the time she graduated, Clayton owned a number of school records, including career strikeouts (293) and career earned run average (0.72).