By Matt Gade

605 Sports

RAPID CITY — If you have been to a Rapid City Stevens softball game or Post 22 Hardhats game, then odds are you’ve met Brox.

But if you haven’t, odds are the 8-year-old social butterfly will introduce himself to you at some point. 

Brox Hunt likes to talk to everyone and isn’t afraid to introduce himself to strangers.

“I think everybody knows him,” said Brox’s mom, Stacy. “I mean, we were actually in Sioux Falls at state softball and walking into the stadium, and as we're walking in, some guy is like, ‘Hey, Brox.’ I have no idea who he is. He's from Harrisburg. 

I stop and I look at him, like, ‘How do you know Brox?’ and he's, ‘Oh, I met him at softball in Rapid City.’ He was going around introducing himself to everyone in the stands.”

Brox is the little brother to Rapid City Stevens senior Sayde Hunt (18), a shortstop for the Raiders softball team, and sophomore Blayn Hunt (16), a shortstop for the Post 22 Hardhats. 

If he manages to arrive before player introductions, he makes it known who his favorite players are — Sayde and Blayn.

Brox, who was born with Down syndrome, spent roughly the first six months as a baby basically living in the hospital. After being born in February, Brox stayed in the hospital awaiting open-heart surgery, or more specifically, CAV Canal surgery.

A Complete Atrioventricular (AV) Canal defect is when a large hole in the center of the heart affects all four chambers, where they would normally be divided.

Brox was in the hospital in Rapid City from the time he was born in February 2017 til May, when he was transported to Omaha for his heart surgery. Stacy said Brox was able to go home in June.

“Maybe nine or 10 months out of open heart surgery, and he was at his first state wrestling tournament watching Blayn wrestle,” Stacy said. “So he's kind of just gone with the flow, literally, since.”
That’s most likely where Brox’s love of sports comes from, they each said.

Sayde said Brox’s favorite sport is rodeo, more specifically bull riding, according to mom, but he also loves baseball.

Brox will often participate in the Monument Health Special Rodeo events at Rodeo Rapid City and the Central States Fair in addition to attending the rodeos as well.

“He loves everything,” Sayde said. “He loves watching rodeo, anything that has to do with rodeo, he eats that up. So the same with baseball. He watches football, not softball, unfortunately, but he watches me, but not on YouTube, like he does rodeo and football.”

Even from his time in the hospital, Stacy said the nurses and doctors noticed how observant and social Brox was. 

During that first year with Brox’s medical troubles, Stacy said that was the most stressful time for the family, but since then, it’s been non-stop keeping up with the kids.

Brox is actually the easiest of the three kids with his go-with-the-flow personality, according to Stacy.

“I always say — medically, he was obviously my most complicated kid, but he's actually my most easy-going, go with the flow kid,” Stacy said.

When he was five, Brox was named the Monument Health 2022 Children’s Miracle Network Champion.

While Sayde and Blayn got older, she said she might be one of the few parents who couldn’t wait for her kids to grow up, or at least old enough to drive, so she wouldn’t have to take all three kids to their activities and could share that responsibility.

A responsibility that Blayn and Sayde have both accepted, and oftentimes figure out amongst the two of them.

Brox reacts to seeing the dessert tray brought by his brother Blayn while sitting with his sister Sayde while attending Post 22's annual Spaghetti Dinner on July 21. (Matt Gade/605 Sports)

‘He makes friends with all ages’

For Blayn, when he steps out onto the field at Fitzgerald Stadium, he said it’s hard not to hear Brox cheering him on.

“Oh, I love it,” Blayn said of hearing Brox cheering him on. “He's my No. 1 fan for sure. So just seeing him there (at the net) just kind of gets me in a good mood to go up to bat or to go on the field.”

With a pair of shortstops in the family, Brox has learned a lot about the games of softball and baseball. 

Stacy said Blayn in particular helped Brox with his hitting and fielding skills when he played tee-ball.

Having followed Sayde and Blayn’s sporting activities since he could practically walk, Sayde and Blayn’s teammates have always been very welcoming to Brox, according to Stacy.

“He gets so excited for every name he hears because he recognizes them all,” Stacy said of Post 22 player introductions.

The same welcoming response from the players can be said for the Post 22 organization as a whole, along with the Raiders and former softball coach Sherry Grismer.

“I think she's always been excited to have Brox around,” Stacy said of Grismer. “She's so active in the Special Olympics, she has always said, ‘Oh, I can't wait till he's playing and we can coach him,’ you know, and things like that. It’s really sad she’s not going to be there next year.”

When asked if he likes Post 22 head coach Kelvin Torve, Brox said, “Oh yeah.”

Besides his siblings, Brox is known to be an especially big fan of Raiders pitcher Lainey Van Zee, who just graduated this past May from Stevens, and Hardhats pitcher Declan Mickley, a senior at St. Thomas More, according to Sayde and Blayn.

Brox Hunt talks with one of his favorite softball players for the Rapid City Stevens Raiders, Lainey Van Zee, during their game against Sioux Falls Washington on May 23 at Parkview Softball Complex in Rapid City. (Matt Gade/605 Sports)

While at games, that’s usuallywhen Brox’s social time goes into effect. 

One minute he might be playing catch with other kids, to sitting next to an adult chatting them up, or standing next to the dugout looking to see who’s up next to the plate.

It can be like a game of Where’s Waldo, trying to locate Brox.

“He makes friends with all ages, old, young — all of the above, everyone,” Sayde said. “So he's all over the place. You'll never know where he's at. He'll either be in the grass, in the stands, anywhere.”

Sayde says she just makes sure to keep him out of trouble if she’s watching Brox.

“I never know what's gonna come out of his mouth, it's kind of questionable, and I never know what he's gonna say,” Sayde said. “But other than that, it's nice, because then I can meet new people every day too, because of him.”

Brox will say exactly what’s on his mind. 

It’s Brox’s personality that Blayn said makes people gravitate towards him. 

“I feel like he knows the right thing to say to people and then makes them laugh or makes them feel better about their day,” Blayn said.

Stacy said Brox typically gravitates towards kids slightly older than him. Usually around the 12- 13 age range, but if he wants, he’ll talk to anyone.

Stacy said she’s grateful for how the players, parents and staff are welcoming to Brox, helping keep an eye on him.

“I mean, obviously, as a parent, you always want your kid to be accepted no matter what, and that's one of the most fun things, is seeing how much he is accepted,” Stacy said. “He's always been pretty well received and accepted. I mean, like all kids, he has his quirks and his frustrations, but he gets along well with people. He's a people person. He likes people and kids, and I think people around him recognize that and feed off of it a little bit.”

Brox Hunt, 8, walks to his seat while his brother Blayn steps into the batter's box during Post 22's game against Sheridan (Wyo.) on April 13. " I kind of get caught up in the game sometimes. So seeing him there standing at the net kind of just gives me a good reminder about what it really is about and how he's my number one fan for sure," Blayn said of Brox. (Matt Gade/605 Sports)

‘They’re the ones holding it together’

As the Raider softball team closed out the spring season with a fifth-place finish at the Class AA state tournament in Sioux Falls, Brox was dancing up and down in the stands as if they had won the state title. 

And as soon as he could, he was hugging Sayde as the Raiders gathered outside the stadium to meet with parents and fans.

Brox enjoys it when Sayde and Blayn win just as much as they do.

“It's amazing. They all, as you can see, have quite a bond,” Stacy said, seeing Brox celebrate with his siblings.

Stacy is quick to acknowledge that Sayde and Blayn are the ones who keep things together. 

“It's hard when you have a medically complicated kid, but Sadie and Blayn could not be better siblings. And I think that sometimes siblings get overlooked when they have a kid that's got such severe medical complications, and really, the siblings are the ones that are kind of holding it together,” Stacy said. 

Sayde and Blayn said they never thought of it as a problem, they just accepted the situation and did what needed to be done. 

With Brox supporting them in all of their activities, they said they’re just repaying the favor.

But that doesn’t mean they aren’t typical siblings who have disagreements from time to time.

“Sadie and Blayn, I think, sometimes get annoyed when they have to babysit and whatever. He's pretty strong-willed, as people around him know, of Brox. They're siblings. They fight like siblings, right? Just because he's got special needs, they don't care. To them, he's just a typical little brother that can be loving and sweet and annoying all at the same time.”

Sayde and Blayn said they each have their own little quirks with Brox. 

Sayde will often whisper into Brox’s ear, telling him funny stories, while Blayn said he likes talking to Brox as a way to relax and not stress about other things.

Lately, Brox has started playing pranks on his older siblings. 

“His new thing he's been doing is pranking us,” Sayde said. “So he will, like, hide our phones. He has been in the fridge, and he put barbecue sauce and mustard together. He says, ‘Haha, prank, you.’ Oh man, that's something we're gonna have to get over. But he thinks it's so funny.”

“Sometimes he will come in with like, some spray, and just kind of spray my mirrors and says,
‘Oh, I got you, Blayn.’ It's fun, fun for him to kind of come in and just mess with us a little,” Blayn said.

As the summer winds down, and school just starting, the 2025-26 school year will mark the last time all the Hunt kids get to share their time together, with Sayde graduating in May before heading off to college.

This past summer was something extra special for Sayde, she said, as she took care of Brox as a full-time job while mom worked and Blayn continued to play baseball.

Sayde decided to forego summer softball this year, for the first time in years. 

It allowed her to enjoy more of the summer rather than traveling all over to play softball. 

“I think it was amazing for both of us, especially because this is my last well, not last summer home, but last summer before leaving (for college),” Sayde said. “So I think since we did get to spend so much time together, it was definitely great, and we both needed that.”

Brox said he had a lot of fun with Sayde this summer, too.

As Brox starts second grade, and Blayn and Sayde are back in high school, there’s no slowing down or shortage of things to do for the Hunt kids right now. 

But Stacy said she is preparing for when Sayde graduates and heads off to college. 

“I’m glad Blayn is still playing. I think once they're done, we're probably going to have to just take on another kid that we can travel and follow,” Stacy said. “He genuinely loves watching softball, and he loves watching Sayde play. 

“But there's some dynamic at Post 22 that's a little bit different, that kind of draws in the crowds of the families a little bit more. And I think he's drawn to that just a little bit more. So it'll probably be a softball or baseball player that we take on and have to become a fan to follow.”

Sayde Hunt walks away from the dugout after Brox visited Blayn in the dugout following the Hardhats game against Sturgis on July 8 at Fitzgerald Stadium. (Matt Gade/605 Sports)