A stalwart of Somerset Cricket Club was a veteran teacher at West End Primary School with a passion for sport.

Diane Hunt, who started out in softball with the PHC Zebras, went on to the Somerset Bluebirds and then became a prominent member of the Big Blue Machine, the women’s national softball team that became a dominant force in Central American and the Caribbean.

Determined and competitive, she was famed for her prowess as a catcher.

She also coached football and netball, and served as an administrator for the Bermuda Football Association, where she was one of the selectors for BFA legends scholarships.

A keen writer, Ms Hunt was a chronicler of sport whose Cup Match pamphlets provided a condensed history of the game and its traditions.

She also wrote a history of the school where she spent most of her career — and was a leading member of the West End Warriors group battling to save West End Primary from closure under reforms of the public education system.

Later in life, she taught at Northlands Primary School.

Ms Hunt’s roles at Somerset Cricket Club included heading the education and youth committee.

Club president Richard Scott said: “Ms Hunt was iconic and a staple name in the households of the Somerset community as a seasoned and skilled educator and avid sportswoman.

“She pushed you beyond your known limits and helped make you a better person.”

He added: “I had the privilege to be taught by her at West End Primary, and she worked in management at Somerset Cricket Club when I was first president.

“She joined management under the late Colin Smith.”

Ms Hunt was a historian of the club who put together the Cup Match booklets.

Mr Scott said her skill and keen eye as a softball catcher extended into her everyday life.

“Ms Hunt would catch and distribute — you could have a conversation with her about anything, and it was as if she could catch it and then issue such a level of wisdom, even if it was tough advice.

“She was always loving and caring. Stern but still with that level of love attached. You would get the sense she was giving you her all.”

Mr Scott called her “one of the most influential persons in many lives in the Somerset community”.

He added that she was an avid golfer often seen at Port Royal, as well as a keen supporter of Liverpool Football Club in England — and wore the red and black of Somerset Trojans on Sundays.

Ms Hunt’s teaching career began with mentorship at West End Primary under the guidance of its principal, Sinclair Richards.

Her studies to qualify as a teacher in Britain coincided with the beginning of Bermudian footballer Clyde Best’s career at West Ham United.

She was a regular spectator at his matches, and the two became close friends.

She taught maths and physical education at West End, where her dedication and competitive spirit were reflected in the sporting and academic achievements of her pupils.

Ms Hunt returned to higher education later in life, graduating from Wheelock College in Massachusetts in 1997 with a Master of Science degree.

Ellen-Kate Horton, another member of the West End Warriors, said Ms Hunt was involved with the campaign for West End Primary from its inception, drawing up signs and documenting the school’s history.

Ms Horton recalled her as “an awesome educator” who was as comfortable on the sports field as in a classroom.

A minute’s silence was held in her memory at a town hall meeting for the school on Wednesday evening.

• Diane Hunt, a stalwart of Somerset Cricket Club, was born on December 19, 1946. She died in March 2023, aged 76