Even after a night’s sleep, Clarendon Hall softball coach Jeffrey Bays found it hard to put into words what his team accomplished Tuesday night.
The Lady Saints traveled to Wardlaw Academy and defeated the Lady Patriots 10-6 to clinch the SCISA Class A softball state championship.
“It’s hard to describe (the feeling),” Bays said. “It means more having to go through Wardlaw, being able to avenge those losses from last year. I overheard a Clarendon Hall alum talk about never being able to get a win at Wardlaw.”
McKenley Wells led the Lady Saints with three hits and three RBIs in Tuesday night’s win.
“It was a rewarding experience,” Wells said Wednesday. “We put in a lot of hard work and extra practice, winning the state championship makes all that worth it.”
Clarendon Hall had the majority of its team returning after losing one senior to graduation.
“There were a lot of expectations put on this team,” Bays said. “We knew it was still going to be a tough road to get here, but entering the season we knew we definitely had a shot.”
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Wells, the lone senior on this year’s team, said beating Wardlaw was exciting after last year’s loss.
“Wardlaw is a good team, but we wanted to prove that we were better,” Wells said. “(This season) has been a challenge, but I try to encourage my teammates and bring out the best in them. We share a bond.”
The two teams met in the SCISA state tournament held in Sumter over the weekend. Clarendon Hall rallied from an 8-2 deficit early in the game, and needed two runs in the bottom of the seventh to knock off the Lady Patriots 13-12.
Bays said Saturday that win gave his team the confidence they could beat Wardlaw.
“Last year, we were a victim of youth,” Bays said. “We were inexperienced with tournament play at the high school level. These girls are used to success, but most of it comes on in travel ball where there is a tournament every weekend. In high school, it’s only one shot.”
Bays said his team was better prepared for what they would face in the series that began Monday at Clarendon Hall. The Lady Saints defeated Wardlaw 15-5 in six innings to take a 1-0 series lead. Calli Yount led CHS with four hits and seven RBIs. Mandy Wells added four hits while McKenley Wells and Autumn Osteen each had two RBIs.
Bays said Yount, who missed all of last season due to surgery, has led the team in average and RBIs during the Lady Saints playoff run.
As the celebration began to wane Tuesday night, Bays said he called his players together for a huddle.
“I just told them how much I loved them,” Bays said. “I told them that there was not one player on the team that he would trade for any other girl. This has been a fun team to coach. They’re special.”
