Time is Right for Legendary Coach to Wax Nostalgic

When Lisa Leonard thinks back to her Evergreen Park High School softball days, there are some memories that still make her laugh.

“We didn’t have full uniforms or anything, we just wore jeans and T-shirts,” said Leonard, a 1976 graduate. “We didn’t have a lot of equipment, and we had to bring our own bats and balls. Women’s sports were not a big deal back then. We just all really loved playing softball.”

Leonard has no complaints about her high school career when it comes to sports and has Marilyn Wax to thank for the opportunities she enjoyed.

Wax, a member of both the Illinois Girls Coaches Association and the Illinois Coaches Association Hall of Fames, is a true pioneer in the sport of softball. She’s one of a handful of coaches credited with setting the foundation for the growth of softball in Illinois.

Wax was Evergreen Park’s first softball coach back in 1970 and spent 32 years at the helm of the program.

“I remember the athletic administrators calling all the women in the physical education department in and asking us what sport we wanted to coach,” Wax said. “I selected softball and no one else was interested, so I lucked out. I loved softball.”

It wasn’t until 1972 that the Illinois High School Association gave girls the opportunity to participate in interscholastic sports.

Softball had its first IHSA state series in 1976.

“In those days, there were no studies to determine if certain things, like weight training, worked,” Wax said. “We did things on our own. There were no charts to use as guides.

"I created my own charts, as most coaches did in those days. It was exciting because you were starting something. Every year you would see what things worked and what didn’t work. We started from scratch. It was kind of an experiment.

“I’d go to all the practices of the guys’ teams, like basketball, football and wrestling. I’d just observe and see how they conducted themselves and eventually created my own philosophies. It was an exciting time because the girls were excited about starting something for the first time.”

In the Beginning

Evergreen Park started with an extremely limited schedule, playing just seven games in its first season, four the next year, followed by six-, nine- and 11-game schedules before beginning conference play in 1974.

“The girls would practice for weeks and weeks at a time just to play softball for a couple of weekends,” said Wax, who retired from coaching in 2001. “We just had a group of athletes that loved the sport.

"I’ve been away from the sport for 10 years now. I’m not sure if athletes today realize what the athletes back then went through in the early days just to create a softball program. The girls used to play just for the love of the game and didn’t have opportunities to even visualize playing in college, getting a scholarship and everything that goes into the game today.”

Leonard, who now lives in Palos Heights, also played badminton and volleyball for the Mustangs.

She may have been the first female at Evergreen Park to earn a scholarship when she signed with the University of Illinois-Chicago.

“I never would’ve gotten a scholarship without (Wax),” Leonard said. “Nobody got women’s scholarships back then and she was instrumental in me getting mine. Marilyn was excellent at motivating people. She always made you want to do your best.

"If it wasn’t for Marilyn and coaches like her, women might not have had the kind of opportunities we did. My generation set the groundwork because we made sacrifices and worked our butts off. We planted the seed and set the groundwork for people coming in after us.”

Wax vividly recalls Evergreen Park’s first conference game in 1974, a tough loss to Stagg.

“There was still snow on the ground that was pushed back against a building,” Wax said. “The game was back-and-forth. Stagg was winning late in the game when my big hitter came up with a runner on base and hit the ball over the left-fielder’s head, but the ball stopped in the snow and the girl picked up the ball and threw it home. It was a bang-bang play, but the runner was out and we lost the game.”

Agent Orange

That loss was the beginning of a tradition for Wax.

“We got on the bus and everyone was disappointed,” Wax said. “Then, I saw an orange piece of construction paper with a big No. 1 on it. I held it up and said to the girls, ‘This is a sign. It means we’re going to win every conference game the rest of the season and win the conference championship.’ That’s exactly what we did.”

The color orange became synonymous with Wax through the years.

The team wore orange shoe laces one year at the state tournament as a good-luck charm, while parents throughout the years would give Wax different items that were always orange.

“She always had one orange pencil that she would start the season with,” said Michelle Durkin (nee Stine), who was a pitcher on back-to-back state teams in 1986 and 1987. “By the end of the season, it was a little stub, but she still had to have it around. It was a good-luck pencil.

"Everything was orange. We were getting on the bus for a sectional game and the bus driver had an orange polyester polka dot vest hanging up, so we knew we were going to win and we won the game to go down state.”

The orange sign with the No. 1 made another appearance in 2001 when Wax brought it to state, explained the story behind the sign and had each player touch it before taking the field.

Winning Tradition

Wax compiled a career record of 523-255-4 and ranks 10^th all-time on the IHSA’s career coaching victories list.

She guided the Mustangs to six state appearances and had just four losing records during her tenure. Wax had an impressive 100-33 record in her final four seasons, including two trips to state.

“I was blessed to have outstanding athletes that helped us have a consistent program,” Wax said. “The fact that we could continue our success throughout four decades was very important to me. We had athletes that were able to continue the tradition year after year and decade after decade.

"I had great athletes that put their heart and soul into the program. That’s what made my career so enjoyable, my interaction with my athletes that were so talented and were proud of what they accomplished.”

When Wax retired, she was the only softball coach to appear at the state tournament in four different decades.

Evergreen Park made its first state appearance in 1978. The Mustangs (17-5) beat Metamora 8-4 in the quarterfinals before losing to eventual champion Quincy 3-1 in the semifinals. There were no third-place games back then. The first third-place game took place in 1985.

Evergreen Park (27-7) placed fourth in 1986, losing to Delavan 7-0 in the third-place game after beating Woodlawn 7-5 in the quarters and falling to Genoa-Kingston 11-5 in the semis.

Evergreen Park (23-9) then lost to Genoa-Kingston 8-6 in the quarterfinals the next season (1987).

“It was an awesome experience,” said Durkin, who lives in Tinley Park. “I loved Evergreen Park and the softball team was wonderful. Before I even came to Evergreen Park, I remember watching (Wax) as a coach and I was very excited to play for her.

"The main thing she taught us was how to become teammates. She loved the sport and lived and died for the program and put everything she had into it. She even had a green car for the school colors. I have so many great memories, and I still keep in touch with coach and some of the girls on the team. She was a big part of my life, was a great teacher and friend and I’m lucky to have her in my life.”

Evergreen Park lost to Rock Island Alleman 2-0 in the state quarterfinals in 1990 when it finished 24-9 and lost to Rock Island 5-0 in the quarterfinals in 1998 to finish with a 25-9 mark.

Wax was fortunate that her last year coaching included a trip to state in 2001 when the Mustangs (26-10) lost to Casey-Westfield 1-0 in the quarterfinals.

“They were all special,” Wax said of the six state appearances. “Of course, playing the first one was so special, but just making the state tournament was a big deal every time. My first state team had four sets of sisters and triplets. My last year was emotional. It was a good way to leave the sport.

"I remember taking the kids out to eat after the game. We were sitting in the restaurant and we looked into the sky and there was a double rainbow. It was quite an ending to my coaching career.”

Wax was never given an assistant coach during her career, but was proud to have one of her former players replace her as the head coach.

Ree McDonald (nee Zenner) coached the freshman team and would help Wax when she was available before being promoted to the varsity coach. McDonald was the leading hitter on the 1987 state team.

“When I knew I was going to be retiring, I asked the administration to consider Ree as my replacement,” Wax said. “I really believed in having former athletes coaching if they were available and able to do it. It was something that had always been a dream of mine.

"I knew Ree would be a good coach because of the fact that she would analyze her play after games, rethink things and figure out how to do something better. She was a good communicator. If she didn’t play well, she would stay after practice and figure out why she didn’t play well and work on her skills. She just loved softball.”

Coaching Legend

Wax also started the bowling team at Evergreen Park in the mid ’70s, leading the Mustangs to eight straight state appearances, including three third-place finishes and a fourth-place performance.

Wax volunteered to coach the golf team for two seasons because the program was in danger of ceasing.

In 1978, Wax accomplished an unheard of coaching rarity when she made state appearances in three sports in the same year. She had individual state qualifiers in golf and guided the bowling and softball teams to state.

“That was one of my most satisfying years,” said Wax, who was on the bowling team when she attended Northern Illinois. “It was such a memorable year to have all that happen. You can impart knowledge and do drills, but the athletes are the ones who have to perform. I was blessed with good athletes every year that bought into what I wanted to do and created a successful program.”

Wax is grateful to have been inducted into two Hall of Fames, but always passes the credit to the players she coached.

“That just shows you how successful my athletes were,” Wax said. “I’m fortunate to have had good relationships with my athletes, their families and the Evergreen Park community over the years. It was a lot of fun. It was a great career and I owe it all to the talented girls I was blessed to have over the years.”