Earlier this week, Ella Hutzler returned with her mother to what could be described as the site of the most devastating and transformative moment of her young life. April Hutzler told her 17-year-old daughter it was therapeutic to make the trip, a process to come to terms with — and move past — what transpired on a horrific night three months ago.

Through her mind’s eye, Ella Hutzler could still see the path she took daily to get to her front door. She could see the dining room where family meals were shared, and the room where the family partook in game nights.

Memories, though, are all she has.

On Feb. 18, in the grips of a historic winter storm, Hutzler’s family home at the Cortland View at TPC complex, in the 4000 block of TPC Parkway, was one of more than 30 units destroyed by a massive fire. Hutzler, a junior softball standout at Antonian College Prep, lost everything but the clothes she was wearing.

“I was like, ‘I just can’t believe I used to walk up those stairs, I used to eat dinner with my family there,’ ” Hutzler said. “You just can’t really fully comprehend that you lost everything.”

Hutzler, however, is focused on what she has. Among the prized possessions are family, friends, teammates and softball. The latter has become even more valued in the face of unmeasurable adversity.

Antonian (23-5), with Hutzler playing an integral role, faces Houston St. Agnes in the TAPPS Division I state semifinals at 3 p.m. Friday at Waco ISD Complex. St. Agnes is coached by Priscilla (Pompa) Riser, a former MacArthur High School standout who previously was an assistant coach at her alma mater and a head coach at Bandera.

The Apaches are at the state tournament for the first time since 2017, when they lost to rival Incarnate Word 21-6 in the state final in Austin in what was the last of five appearances at the state tournament in six seasons (2012-2017).

“The biggest thing is just keeping the same mindset that we had last year,” Antonian coach Johnny Villanueva said. “The second thing is don’t take anything for granted because it can be taken from you the next day. Play every pitch, play every ball like it’s your last. That’s one thing that they’ve learned.”

Hutzler knows her coach’s sentiment well. A transfer from Veterans Memorial High School in the Judson ISD, she was looking to do her part in helping her new team make a return to the top. But an arctic front arrived in mid-February, leaving San Antonio stuck in place as nearly six inches of snow fell, power outages occurred, temperatures plummeted below freezing for days and pipes either froze or burst.

At an apartment complex in north Bexar County, fire alarms had been tripped for a few days because of the weather. When it happened around 1 p.m. on Feb. 18, Hutzler figured it was another false alarm. A few hours later, a blaze engulfed the building as firefighters struggled for water as freezing temperatures froze nearby water hydrants. Hutzler was among 130 residents who lost all their belongings.

“It was really hard to get through, because you just watch as everything that you’ve ever owned — every teddy bear you collected, everything you collected on vacations — is just all gone,” Hutzler said.

The Antonian community rallied around the Hutzlers, collecting clothing and anything else to help.

“We didn’t really know how to react because nothing that serious has been exposed to us,” Antonian junior infielder Hailey Sonka said. “It was just like, ‘What? It’s burning? Everything’s gone?’ We just let her know we were here for anything and whatever she needed. That’s all we knew how to do at that time.”

During the difficult time, softball was an escape for Hutzler, a 6-foot-1 pitcher/third baseman who is a top prospect in the Class of 2022. But even that was taken away from her, momentarily.

A few weeks after the fire, Hutzler started having back pain. She originally dismissed it as stress from the ordeal. The pain, though, persisted and she sought medical attention. An X-ray revealed nothing, but a MRI indicated a stress fracture.

Hutzler had to wear a back brace and was sidelined for a month. Something, however, still didn’t feel right. Hutzler returned to her doctor for a more advanced X-ray and a CT scan. The testing revealed the source of Hutzler’s discomfort was an extra bone near her L5 vertebrae near her tailbone. Her doctor believed a previous stress fracture, in healing itself, grew the extra bone for protection and caused the anomaly.

An extra bone often doesn’t cause an issue, but it ended Hutzler’s pitching career because the bone was hitting a nerve and causing inflammation whenever she pitched. Had she continued to pitch, Hutzler said, the injury could’ve worsen to the point where she might have needed surgery to remove the extra bone and a career-ending spinal fusion.

“It was a lot to take in mentally, and just trying to use the one thing to escape from everything was a good outlet for me,” Hutzler said. “That’s the way I had to understand how to shut everything out and play the game I love. Just being around my teammates, I loved it. They’re the one thing that made me just really happy all season, no matter what was happening. You do appreciate the little things, pitch by pitch, ground balls, everything. It was definitely easier with support.”

Hutzler’s outlook was strengthened by another real-life situation. When she was in the seventh grade, a tumor was discovered on her tailbone. Her doctor told Ella and her parents that there was a 75-percent likelihood that it was leukemia.

“I was like, ‘Why are you doing this to me, God? Why am I facing death so early in my life?’ It took me after the whole thing to realize why I went through that. No matter how deep you are in the hole in life, you can get out of it.”

— Antonian junior softball player Ella Hutzler on cancer scare

“At 12 years old, anyone who has tumors, you automatically think cancer,” Ella said. “As soon as they told me it was 75-percent leukemia, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m going to die. I’m not going to make it through this.’ Just thinking that at 12 years old, when you’re supposed to have your whole life ahead of you, was really hard for me.

“At that young age, I did ask the ‘why’ question. I was like, ‘Why are you doing this to me, God? Why am I facing death so early in my life?’ It took me after the whole thing to realize why I went through that. No matter how deep you are in the hole in life, you can get out of it.”

A few days later, blood tests showed that Hutzler didn’t have leukemia and that the tumor was benign.

Hutzler’s journey — and how she navigated the tough parts — has been an inspiration for her team. A year ago, the Apaches had their sights on a berth into the state tournament. Led by third baseman Emma Richards, who is playing at Division I Ball State, pitcher Samantha Stephens and catcher Kalie De Leon, the Apaches were a strong title contender.

But while playing in a tournament in San Marcos, those aspirations were dashed when TAPPS canceled the season because of a global coronavirus pandemic.

“We were prepared to get to state, we were prepared to win, and then COVID happened,” Antonian senior outfielder/pitcher Kelsey Selva said. “It kind of gave me a new perspective of appreciating softball in general, and everything in life.

“I had been so focused on softball, softball, then that happened, and it reminded me that softball’s important, obviously, and don’t take it for granted, but don’t take anything for granted, like your house, your family, your friends. It’s just remembering that we’re blessed.”

terrence@terrencesports.com
Twitter: @sa_terrence1