The Class A #1 Caney Lady Cougars (29-12) dominated their opponents on May 12 en route to a Class A Oklahoma Secondary Schools Activities Association Slow Pitch State Championship at Firelake Ball Park in Shawnee.
Caney defeated Tupelo 9-1 in the first round, Roff 16-9 in the semi-final round and Soper 14-6 in the state championship. It was Caney’s first state championship in Class A but second con- secutive state championship, after winning the Class B state championship a season ago.
“It was a new challenge and our team didn’t back down from it. Our team wasn’t afraid to get on the bus and play great competition all year long and it paid off in the end. Our seniors McKinley (Mac) Wheeler and Kenna Barnes had great performances today and I’m grateful to have had them on our team,” Caney Head Coach Jackie Dollarhide said.
The team ended the season with a record of 19-12 against top 20 teams regardless of class. Caney went 2-0 against 5A schools and 5-5 against 4A schools.
Of the team’s 33 home runs on the season, 8 (24.2 percent) were hit at the state championship. Wheeler hit 4 home runs on the day, Cheyenne Daniel hit 3 and Cenzlie Hendricks hit 1.
“I feel that this state championship was a little bit easier because we knew what to expect. We knew the pressure and knew the atmosphere we were going to be in,” Wheeler said.
First round vs Tupelo - Caney started the state tournament scoring three runs prior to recording an out, thanks to a Mylea Willis single, Wheeler 2-run home run and a Daniel double that scored Taigan Crites. The Lady Cougars added another run before the inning ended with Daniel scoring as Kaigan Ladd reached on error.
After two scoreless innings, Caney scored 3 in the bottom of the fourth inning. Crites hit a double that scored Willis and Wheeler and Daniel hit a ground out that scored Crites to give Caney a 7-0 lead after 4. In the fifth inning, Ladd scored on an error and Wheeler hit a solo home run in the sixth inning. With only three outs remaining in the game, Tupelo ended the shutout by hitting three singles in the top of the seventh but Caney limited the damage and won 9-1.
Semi-final round vs Roff - Wheeler opened the semi-final round the same way she did in the first round with a two-run home run. Caney wasn’t done in the top of the first as Hendricks hit a solo home run to give the Lady Cougars a 3-0 lead but Roff came right back and tied the game at 3 after one inning.
In the top of the third, Wheeler was intentionally walked but two batters later Daniel hit a three-run home run and Brooklyn Barnes hit a ground ball that scored Hendricks that gave Caney a 7-3 lead but again Roff responded by scoring 4 runs and tying the game at 7 at the end of the third inning.
A double by Crites in the fourth inning gave the Lady Cougars a 2 run lead and Daniel followed Crites by hitting a three-run home run. To end the scoring for Caney in the fourth inning, Kaelynn McMichael hit a double that scored Hendricks which gave Caney a 13-7 lead. Roff would score 2 runs in the final 4 innings while Caney scored 3 additional runs to put the Lady Cougars in the state championship game with a 16-9 victory over Roff.
State championship vs Soper - Caney scored two in the top of the first inning via a Daniel double that scored Willis and Crites. A Soper two-run home run tied the game at 2 after the first inning. Wheeler and Ladd each had a run batted in during the third inning to give Caney a 4-2 lead. In the fourth inning, Wheeler hit a grand slam which gave the Lady Cougars some breathing room with a 8-2 advantage. Soper refused to go out quietly as they hit numerous singles and a double in the bottom of the fourth inning for 3 runs which cut the deficit in half, 8-5.
A sacrifice fly by Caney’s Talynn Ladd gave Caney a 9-5 lead in the fifth inning. In the sixth inning, the Lady Cougars added 5 insurance runs to lead 14-5.
After a solo home run by Soper in the bottom of the seventh inning, Caney pitcher McMicheal and the defense produced three consecutive outs to claim the state championship.
“It’s amazing (to win a state championship in her final game). I wouldn’t want it any other way. I love these girls so much. The program is great and our coaches are amazing. I wouldn’t have wanted to do it with anybody else,” Kenna Barnes said.
The Caney Slow Pitch softball team provided the following statement “We would like to thank all the individuals and businesses who supported the team this year. We had a lot of people help financially. We absolutely couldn’t do it without them.”
