Lady Bulldogs senior signs with NEO

Muldrow Lady Bulldogs senior outfielder/infielder Danica Tune always had the dream to play college softball. Now she will.

Tune signed a letter of intent with Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in a signing ceremony Friday afternoon at Roger Sharp Activity Center.

“Since I’ve been little, I’ve always wanted to go off and play at another level,” said Tune, who was named to the 2024 All-District 4A-6 Softball Team. I’m very excited. I’m glad that I’m going to get to play at a different level. I guess I’ll see how it goes.”

Tune hit .381 with eight doubles, two triples, two home runs and had 17 runs batted in last season for the Lady Bulldogs this past fast-pitch softball season.

The Muldrow senior also said choosing NEO had a little bit of influence by her older sister, Destiny, who also played for the Golden Norse.

“It kind of did,” the NEO signee said. “Going up there for her was what influenced me because I was used to it. The environment is great.”

However, all the times Tune would go to Miami, Okla., to see her older sister play pretty much etched in stone the fact she would end up following her footsteps to NEO.

“It’s like my home away from home,” Tune said. “My sister went there for three years, so I had been up there all the time. I just loved it, so it felt like home to me. That’s why I chose where I wanted to go (to play college softball).”

“I expect ‘Danny’ to play at NEO, and I expect her to play past NEO,” Muldrow fast-pitch softball coach Luke Folkerts said. “She’s just got the capability and the knack of being a great softball player. I think she’s going to have a lot of success.”

Tune isn’t sure how quickly she is going to be making an impact for NEO on the softball field.

“I’m not sure because I know her (NEO coach Bailey Burnett) group right now is pretty good,” she said. “I’m not sure how that (getting into the line-up) is going to go. Hopefully, I will get to play.”

Tune said Burnett recruited her as an outfielder, although she played infield quite a bit for the Lady Bulldogs. She said she isn’t sure if she will strictly be an outfielder, or she will come into the infield during her NEO softball career.

“I don’t know,” Tune said. “I guess that’s up to (Burnett). I am lefthanded, so it’s kind of hard to put me in different places.”

Although Miami is about 120 miles from Muldrow and Sequoyah County, Tune said she isn’t too concerned about the distance.

“I’m not really concerned,” she said. “I’m excited because it’s kind of close but it’s kind of far, so I like that gap to where I can come home on the weekends.”

“‘Danny’ has been a girl that’s been a reliable player for us for four years,” Folkerts said. “She started for us for four years. She’s been great defensively and great offensively. She’s been great to have in the locker room for all our up-and-comers.”