Oklahoma high school softball: Perry, Dale, Caddo, Tupelo win Class 3A-B fastpitch titles
Jordan Davis The Oklahoman
October 7, 2023
The Class 3A-B Oklahoma high school fastpitch softball state championships were held on Saturday at Cowgirl Stadium in Stillwater. Here are recaps from each game.
Class 3A: Perry 3, Lone Grove 2
Joely Kukuk could feel the chaotic energy from the crowd.
But she refused to run from it. The sophomore embraced it head-on.
In the bottom of the seventh with one out and the bases loaded, Lone Grove’s Brooklyn Langford hit a fly ball for the second out, bringing Ava Stanley home to score. Seconds later, Marklee McMurtrey advanced to third as Aeryn Shuman got caught in a rundown at second and was tagged out.
Kukuk’s anxious nature seconds prior blossomed into relief as Perry captured their first-ever Class 3A state championship with a 3-2 victory.
“In a moment like that, you’ve got to stay focused,” Kukuk said. “You have to remember the basics of what to do and stay in your own head to ignore the noise.”
“My motivation every day this season was thinking of what we could be. We spoke about winning a state title in our first practice this year and it became one of our goals. Being around each other every day made us closer, and we motivated each other to get here.”The Maroons got on the board early in the first after junior Emery Halford scored following a single from Kennedy Hight. Halford was walked at the plate and stole second base to help advance runners leading to an additional score from Alliyah Shrum.
In the next inning, Nevaeh Mills crushed a single to right field to bring Kukuk in to score — giving Perry a 3-0 lead early on.
“Environments like this can be nerve-wracking,” Halford said, “but for me — it kind of gets me going. We first made history by making it past the first round and then again now that we’ve won the whole thing. It’s a real big deal so I love that I got to do it with some of my favorite people.”
The Maroons are a year removed from a school-best 33-8 record while coming up short in the super-regional. Now, the previously second-ranked school in its class has added a state championship to its belt following a historic 35-6 season.
A small school that has always been known for its dominance in wrestling will now be labeled as the best Class 3A fastpitch team in the state.
“It’s just an incredible feeling that I can’t describe,” Perry coach Bryan Hayes said. “It’s a great culmination to all the hard work that the kids put in.”
“My message to them this week was to remember who you are. Remember why we made it this far and let’s show a little grit. I’ve never seen them more gritty than they were this weekend and I’m unbelievably proud.”
Class 2A: Dale 2, Pocola 0
Kinsley Hill had envisioned this moment since her freshman year.
Throughout conditioning training, hundreds of pitching sessions with the bullpen staff and three previous seasons with the Pirates, all she wanted to do was capture a Class 2A state title.
And on Saturday in Stillwater, she did just that.
Hill pitched all seven innings for Class 2A Dale, striking out six batters en route to a 2-0 win over Pocola to win the Pirates’ sixth state championship.
“We knew it wouldn’t be easy, but we stayed confident and kept making the right plays needed to come out on top,” Hill said. “It feels great to see all our hard work pay off on the biggest stage.”
“We didn’t know where we were going to be at the beginning of the season. Us getting here just shows everyone did their job to the best of their ability and I couldn’t be more proud of everything we’ve accomplished this year.”
Hill allowed just two hits on the afternoon in her shutout effort while facing 29 batters.
Dale’s offensive output started early on with first baseman Gracee Waller. With Heartly Snyder on first, the senior bunted — resulting in an error by Pocola pitcher Allyssa Parker. The error brought Snyder home and also led Waller around the diamond for an inside-the-park home run.
Waller’s at-bat resulted in just one of three hits for Dale on the afternoon but proved to be a roadblock in the Indians’ effort to make a comeback.
“Just to get the bunt down and move the runner to make a play — that’s my job at the end of the day,” Waller said. “Where Coach Powell has me placed in the lineup, I have to make some big plays from time to time. Today l was able to do that and it feels great to say I played a big role in the win.”
The Pirates conclude their title season with a 40-3 record after previously losing to Pocola a year ago in the semifinals. Coach Andy Powell secured his fifth state championship with Dale since joining in 2006. The Pirates’ most recent state title came in 2018.
“There is no place that pushes their kids and their program like we do at Dale,” Powell said.
“From the administration to the parents who start them out young and put in the effort to make their kids better. The dedication that I’ve seen from this community to its athletes is something I’ve never seen before. The people and the players we have here are truly special ”
Class A: Caddo 1, Red Oak 0
All Kadey Lee McKay wanted to do was set the tone early.
In the bottom of the first, the OU commit stepped up to the plate determined to get the Bruins back on base after Rylan Peevyhouse bunted into a double play.
McKay not only set the tone with her first at-bat — she dictated the entire outcome of Caddo’s season.
McKay crushed a home run in the first 15 minutes of action, serving as the only score of the game for either team. Class A Caddo defeated Red Oak 1-0 for its second consecutive state title.
“It’s my senior year, so it was important to me to make a statement early that we were here to win,” McKay said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better way to go out on top. This season has been picture-perfect. We work so hard all the time on and off the field and I’m just so proud of this team for coming together and accomplishing this.”
Red Oak struggled to get on base throughout the afternoon as Bruins right-hander Timber Hensley threw a no-hitter through the first four innings. The junior struck out eight and allowed just two hits in all seven innings while facing 25 batters.
McKay spearheaded Caddo’s infield dominance in the afternoon — being in the position to force a plethora of force outs and double plays.
The win marked the Bruins’ 17th consecutive victory, finishing the season ranked No. 1 in Class A with a 39-2 record.
“Today, we exuded the grit and determination that this program preaches every day,” Caddo coach Dustin McKay said. “We mostly pride ourselves on being really good defensively and pitching it really well. So when you have players like Timber and Kaden, it makes a huge difference for us in tough games like today.”
“At the end of the day, we want to go compete every day and give these girls a chance to compete at the highest level. We’ve been fortunate enough and blessed to put ourselves in good enough positions to be rewarded by our hard work — and it’s all paid off for the better.”
Class B: Tupelo 3, Turner 2
Everyone on the inside of the Tupelo High School fastpitch softball program knew the Lady Tigers had the makeup to contend for a Class B state championship this fall.
Fans of the Lady Tigers, including this sports writer, had a pretty good idea, too.
Saturday, they proved it to the small-school softball world by defeating No. 2 Turner 3-2 in a thrilling Class B state championship game held at Oklahoma State University’s Cowgirl Stadium.
The recipe for a state title run was simple — trot ace Ava Sliger out to the pitching circle and have every Lady Tiger player “Pull The Rope.”
Tupelo head coach Dustin Romines said the team’s Pull The Rope motto was born during the 2022 fall campaign.
“I’ve had several people ask me what is the meaning of pull the rope. To us, it means every single girl pulling in the same direction, towards the same goal and putting the team above any one individual,” Tupelpo head coach Romines explained. “It was something the girls came up with last year after we had hit a rough patch and it has stuck with us ever since. I’ve never seen a more tight-knit group than this one we have here.”
Romines has been the head coach for the Lady Tigers for the past five seasons and he knew when he first took over that he had a special group of eighth graders that had a chance to mold into a formidable team by the time they were seniors. This year’s seniors included Raylee Jones, Elizabeth Marshall, Ava Sliger, Jaycee Stringer and Maci Gaylor.
“When I was given the opportunity to be the head coach five years ago, I was extremely nervous but very excited at the same time,” Romines recalled.
“I knew it was going to take some time to get to the level we wanted to be at, but I also knew that I had a group of eighth graders, our seniors now, that were very talented and had a chance to be a special group and do some big things. So this thing started many years ago before I ever came into the picture.”
What does seeing a state championship come to fruition for his Lady Tigers? Romines had a tough time coming up with the right words.
“I’ve done my very best to lead this program and these girls. I know I’m far from perfect, but every decision I have ever made was what I thought was best for the team at that moment,” he said. “ I’m so very thankful to be a Tiger and to have had the opportunity to play a small part in helping these kids become successful human beings. I’m also thankful that this group took me on this ride and made me a state champion. I feel like I was just a bus driver and along for the ride, and oh what a ride it was.”
Romines said that winning the state title on Saturday was just the icing on the cake as far as his bond with the 2023 Tupelo Lady Tigers.
“It’s hard to put into words what it means to me,” he said.
“There have been so many memories made that will never be forgotten, relationships and friendships that will live on forever and this group will always be remembered as the team that made history here in the small town of Tupelo,” Romines continued. “I absolutely, wholeheartedly, with everything that I am, love this team.”
That’s a face that never was in doubt.