Jul. 5—Opponents attempted to put runs on the board against the Boyd County Cal Ripken 8U softball team this weekend.
It proved to be an insurmountable feat.
Boyd County achieved a momentous feat of its own after rolling through six games without a defeat at the state tournament in Louisville.
The team outscored its opponents, 94-12, and took home a state championship trophy on Sunday after defeating Prairie Village, 13-1.
Cal Ripken is a division of the Boyd County Babe Ruth League. The All-Star squad is selected from teams in the league and play their first game together on the state stage.
Coach Lance Seasor praised his team’s effort and their versatility.
“Our team played absolutely wonderful from top to bottom,” Seasor said. “We hit the ball really well. I could have completely flipped my lineup and it would not have mattered. We played really good defense. We went through a six-game tournament, and we had six errors total. It was pretty impressive.”
The team had only practiced together but never played in a game until Friday night. Seasor never saw his team get rattled against state tournament competition.
“We practiced them pretty hard and put them through game situations,” Seasor said. “They were prepared. They did what they were supposed to do. They didn’t seem to let the moment bother them. I was pretty surprised by that. They kept their cool throughout the whole weekend and showed up to play every day.”
Boyd County eclipsed the double-digit mark in each contest, even prevailing, 23-1, and 17-0, in a pair of games. Seasor said players had played together before but quickly formed a cohesive unit on the field.
“It was the first time as a whole that this group of girls have played together,” Seasor said. “A lot of our girls know each other and have played on various teams together in the past. They meshed together flawlessly. We never had any issues. It really was impressive.”
Boyd County advances to the Ohio Valley Regional Tournament this weekend in Glasgow. Teams in the field will be represented by six different states.
(606) 326-2564 — msparks@dailyindependent.com