After helping revitalize Dewey High softball, coach moves into college ranks

By Mike Tupa

BARTLESVILLE AREA SPORTS REPORT

Despite some outstanding coaches through several years during the early 2000s to the latter 2010’s  the fortunes of the Dewey High School softball team mostly floated up and down like a butterfly trapped in the vicissitudes of rising and falling breezes.

But with the arrival in 2017 of former Lady Dogger player Niki Keck as head coach the trajectory of the program climbed steadily upward toward greatness — and beyond.

During those years of the early 2020’s, Dewey achieved a level that revived memories of the Lady Doggers’ status as one of the state’s elite powers.

Then arrived a couple of seasons of adjustments and challenges — but the team appears to be thrusting to rarefied success again in the lead up to the 2025 campaign.

But whatever Dewey achieves from the 2025 season on will be achieved without Keck directing the Lady Doggers from the red-painted home dugout.

She confirmed Wednesday night (Dec. 11) she has accepted the head softball coaching job at Crowder (Neosho, Mo.) College.

“I had an umpire call me who knew that job was open,” Keck said. “He told me I should apply and that I’d be a good fit for it.”

Crowder thought so too, leaving Dewey minus a head softball coach but enriched by the legacy her tenure signified.

In eight seasons her Lady Dogger teams posted 164 wins — an average of more than 20 per season and a career winning percentage of .630. She guided Dewey to the state tournament three times — the most consistent success Dewey had achieved since winning seven state titles in an 11-year period (1984-94).

In addition, during her final seven seasons, the Lady Doggers amassed a 56-30 record in district games — including five-straight seasons with a winning district record and seven with a non-losing mark.

Keck reached the apex of her success on the field by guiding her 2021 team to a 31-3 record and semifinal spot in the Class 3A state tournament. She also was renown for getting Dewey off to hot starts — the 2020 powerhouse started off at 16-0; the 2021 team began at 14-0 and boasted a 27-1 record after 28 contests.

During interviews throughout the years Keck often heaped praise on her players due to their dedication, hard work, devoted preparation and winning attitude.

Obviously Keck also did a lot of things right to prepare her team for success.

“I think it may be I brought a culture of discipline and also pride and pridefully representing Dewey softball and doing things the right way every day,” she reflected.

But throughout the ride the past eight seasons Keck felt her time coaching at Dewey would be limited and that she would reach her next career objective of coaching on the college level.

“I knew eventually there was going to be something to move on to,” she said. “Crowder has always kind of had a very good team. They’ve been very competitive and are a highly sought-after program.”

Keck’s life has been weaved around softball since her girlhood days. After graduating from Dewey, she played two years of junior college softball at Independence (Kan.) Community College and then transferred to Rogers State.

Coming out of Rogers State she helped start up a competitive softball program and also coached at Claremore-Sequoyah High School. When the Dewey head coaching came open — less than a decade after Keck had graduated — she came home.

“It was very cool to give back to the community I grew up in,” she said. “I had a strong core of support.”

In an interview several years ago, Keck said she intended from the day she started the Dewey job to navigate the program back to a state tournament level. After a near miss in 2018 of getting into the playoffs, Keck’s squad clawed into state in 2019 — just three seasons after she became coach.

One of her favorite experiences relates to the 2019 season, when Dewey surprised the rest of 3A by winning its regional and advancing to state for the first time in more than a decade-and-a-half. Dewey rolled through the regional outscoring its opponents, 33-18.

“That was one of the best memories … because we weren’t expected to do it (qualify for state),” she said.

Dewey also returned to the Big Dance for the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

The Lady Doggers continued to put up winning records in 2022, 2023, 2024 — and twice advanced to the regional championship game, despite crucial injuries and more than its share of adversity.

Keck has had opportunities to travel beyond her softball playing/coaching career.

As a student in the early 2000s at Bartlesville’s Central Middle School, she was picked to join a delegation of Oklahoma junior high students to visit Europe. 

She went on to attend Dewey High. As a freshman softball player at Independence CC, she batted .318, ripped 11 doubles and led in RBIs while hunkering down at catcher every game. She picked off 19 baserunners and threw out almost 90 percent of would-be base thieves.

An example of Keck’s rugged determination can be emphasized by a game during her high school days. She caught all of a sun-scorching 14-inning district game and refused to come out after being cleated in the face.

Now it's time for Keck to rise to the next challenge. Good luck, coach.

Dewey High School head softball coach and Lady Bulldogger former player Niki Keck accepted the head softball coaching position at Crowder (Neosho, Mo.) College. In her eight seasons at Dewey, she posted 164 wins and guided her alma mater to three state tournaments.

(From Bartlesville Area Sports: best wishes Coach Keck and thank you for the memories and your dedication and hard work on and off of the field.)

PHOTO PROVIDED