Benched, she still makes captain

HINGHAM -- The Notre Dame Academy softball players were giggling as they huddled, waiting to have their team pictures taken in the school gym. When senior Christina Crespi walked in, they all noticed; ''Crespi!" one of the players shouted.

Crespi has not played softball for Notre Dame for more than two years but she remains an important part of the team.

Before a genetic disorder ended what was, by all accounts, a very promising career, she was the type of player who could chase down zipping fly balls in the outfield and hit line drives to center field. Coaches believed she would be a Division I college prospect.

Just before her sophomore season, Crespi was diagnosed with mitochondrial disorder, a diseases that affects cellular metabolism and cellular energy. It means any extended exercise breaks down her muscles, causing mild to extreme pain in a matter of minutes.

There is no cure, but she is treated with medication and takes precautions to not overexert herself in daily activities. That means no sports.

''By now, I'm pretty used to it, but at times it gets frustrating because I wanted to play college ball," Crespi said. ''. . . I was heartbroken, I'm not going to lie. This is the one thing that made me really happy. I have always been really quiet in school, and softball was kind of like my outlet."

So Crespi, who is from Weymouth, helps the team in other ways. She is the team manager. She helps catch balls, feed the pitching machine, keep the scorebook, and she alerts teammates of where to play in the field for opposing batters.

''She's like my right arm," Notre Dame softball coach Cindy Tozzi said. ''It's funny because when she's not there, [the players] want to know where she is. She has such a presence around them. We're there as coaches, but they know she's there for them, and they're there for her."

After last season, the players voted to make Crespi one of the team's captains. They called her at work to tell her the news, and she cried.

''I was really surprised because I wasn't playing, and a captain always plays," Crespi said. ''But it was really nice because a lot of them I played with my freshman year, and they knew what I could do and how much I loved it."

Sports always made Crespi happy.

As a sixth-grader, her first love was basketball. Her parents, Paul and Janice Crespi, knew when she picked a sport it meant she was going to do everything she could to be the best. She joined travel teams and club teams. She practiced all the time.

But, at around the same time, she noticed that, after extended running up and down the court, her legs would cramp. She began to see a muscle specialist who found that her muscles were breaking down, but he could not explain why. In seventh grade, the doctor recommended Crespi play a sport with less impact on her body. She chose softball and adapted to it right away.

Again, she played on travel teams and practiced to the top of her level because she wanted to play softball in college.

Tozzi could see the talent in Crespi her freshman year. She made varsity as a freshman along with her friend, Brittne Annis, also of Weymouth.

''She was scary good," Annis said. ''She could catch a ball in the air and start making her throw all before she hit the ground."

Notre Dame enjoyed a successful season that year, reaching the state tournament. The players were all excited about coming back for one more season.

But for Crespi, that was to be her last high school season. She played for a travel team in the summer and began to feel the cramps that plagued her while playing basketball. She continued to play, hoping to break out of a hitting slump, which she did.

But, by that night, she was in an emergency room. She knew the routine by then -- drink plenty of fluids, eat protein. There was no diagnosis.

She spent the next week in bed.

The aching and cramping that others experience after extended strenuous exercise is what Crespi was experiencing after just a few minutes of exercise, and it grew progressively worse.

She had to stop playing softball. She has to pace herself when walking from a parking lot. She has to take breaks when walking around an amusement park. She keeps herself hydrated and eats protein bars.

Watching her stop playing sports also was tough for her parents, who tried to see every game she played. It was especially tough for Janice Crespi, who said she still finds it difficult to go to a game and not see her daughter on the field.

''I just enjoyed watching her play sports no matter what she played. She's a real quiet kid, but between the lines she was very competitive. She could always size up her competition."

Paul Crespi watched every game his daughter played that freshman season. He continues to attend games now, and he makes sure she knows he is there.

''She has such a tremendous drive, and I think she inspires the girls around her," he said.

Junior Molly Nestor said Crespi is a motivational part of the team. ''She has such a positive attitude, and she never complains," Nestor said. ''She just makes us realize how lucky we are to have this opportunity."

Crespi will attend the University of Rhode Island in the fall on a merit scholarship. She would like to be a nurse and work with others who have her condition.

She also is looking forward to rooting on the athletes at Rhode Island.

''I'm definitely going to all the games," Crespi said. ''I'll be like a super fan."

Monique Walker can be reached at mwalker@globe.com