Whitewater softball falls shy of state title

Prior to their loss to Evans in the first game of the Class AAAA Elite Eight in Columbus, the Whitewater Lady Wildcats varsity softball team had lost once.

It was a 1-0 loss to East Coweta on Aug. 26. In the nearly two months since that game, Whitewater was unstoppable. They won 26 straight games, 15 of which were shutouts. They were ranked number one in Class AAAA and were counted among many as one of the favorites to win it all.

Then came the loss to Evans, a 2-1 game which featured eight strikeouts by Whitewater pitcher Whitney Toler. It was the first time in nearly a month that Whitewater had given up more than one run. The loss put the team in the loser’s bracket, a tough name for an even tougher spot to be in. If they had any hopes of reaching the state championship game, there was no margin for error. They would have to win four straight games just to make the final and six if they were going to win it all.
The girls fell just short of their goal.

“After losing that first game, we really found out what we were made of,” said head coach Stacey Smith. “People told me that if anybody could make the final from the loser’s bracket, it would be us. I told them I hoped they were right.”

The Lady Wildcats roared back from the loss with wins over Ola (7-3), Jones County (4-3 in 10 innings), Sequoyah (2-0) and Northwest Whitefield (2-0). Toler gave her typically brilliant performances, striking out 30 through the four wins. As always, she was backed up by a solid defense that made the big plays look easy and the amazing plays when they had to.

What struck Smith the most about the weekend was how the entire team stepped up and contributed. Typically, a team would use 10 or 11 of the players on the roster, but circumstances led to all 17 girls on the roster getting in the game and each contribution was a factor in Whitewater’s run to the final.
“Whether it was a sacrifice bunt or a base hit or a play on defense, they made the plays,” Smith recalled. “It was an amazing weekend.”

The weekend stopped just shy of being historic.

Whitewater faced their old nemesis, Marist, in the final and almost struck first in the first inning but couldn’t get their runner home. The two teams remained deadlocked into the ninth inning, where once again Whitewater got a runner over to third base but couldn’t bring her home. In the bottom of the inning, Marist broke the tie and captured the state title again.

Smith spoke highly of all of her players and their efforts in the state playoffs, but also reflected on the years and careers of her seniors. Toler, a candidate for pitcher of the year, had 47 strikeouts in the Elite Eight and was just dominant throughout the season. Smith stated that McKenzie Woody seemed to find a way on base every game and usually twice a game and Haley Richards had a high batting average and slugging percentage and was always finding the big hit or driving in a big run. Smith also praised McKenzie Mosley, Mackenzie Toler and Kaitlyn Johnson for good weekends and great seasons, but also stated again that everyone on the team was part of the run to the championship game over the weekend.

There were tears at the end of the season, especially for the six seniors who had played together for a number of years. There will be some big shoes to fill at Whitewater next season, but Smith feels her team will be a contender once more and is confident that their winning tradition will continue.