October 8, 2022

Tinley Lucas knew she could get the ball over the fence.

Earlier in the game, the senior had pulled one foul that had gone over left field.

This time she was going to make it right.

Lucas reared back and hammered a solo home run on the left field fence of OG&E Energy Field to extend Washington’s lead. It was her second home run in two days and it gave Washington pitcher Maggie Place enough cushion to dominate from the circle the way she’s done since her arrival four years ago.

Three outs later, Washington was dogpiling again near the pitcher’s circle as the Warriors took down Tishomingo 2-0 on Saturday. Place, who was pitching in her fourth state championship game, was caught in the middle of it.

And she deserved it.

She had struck out five batters and allowed just one hit in the final.

“She started in her 11th state tournament game today,” Washington coach Tylor Lampkin said. “That might be more than anybody that I know before. Being in this atmosphere is no big deal to her. I think she ended this season with a 0.35 ERA. I don’t know if she’s the best but she’s definitely in the conversation as one of the best ones ever.”

The senior pitcher-catcher duo of Place and Lucas have been dominant all year long. And they produced when Washington needed them most.

Place ends her Washington career as a two-time state champion and one of the winningest pitchers in the program.

“It’s just really awesome,” Place said, “just to get to leave a legacy here, it’s really fun.”

Place wasn’t the only dominant pitcher on Saturday. The final was a pitcher’s duel between Place and Tishomingo’s Jayden Anderson. Combined the pitchers allowed just five hits throughout the game. Anderson struck out 10 batters but it wasn’t enough to keep Washington’s high-powered offense scoreless.

In the first inning, Washington’s Elly Allison hit an RBI single to left-center to score Ellie Lovelace who hit a triple. And in the third, Tinley hit her home run.

“The feeling is immaculate right now,” Lucas said. “We knew that it was going to take a lot of work to get back to this spot and to keep our title and the fact that we actually pulled it off is pretty amazing. It feels great going out like that.”