By BRET H. MCCORMICK, Journal Sports
SULPHUR – Grace Christian stared at two major hurdles as they arrived back at North Frasch Park, home of the LHSAA state softball championships.
The Lady Warriors had never won a state title.
In fact, they’d never even made it to the championship game before.
Hurdles cleared.
Sophomore center fielder Wynnlee Vincent went 4-for-4 with a triple and five RBIs to earn the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award as top-seeded Grace (24-10) defeated No. 2 Family Community 12-2 on Saturday to win the Division V Select softball title.
Vincent hit a two-run triple in the second inning to give Grace a 4-1 lead, and the Lady Warriors were never threatened from there. She added a two-run single in the third as Grace took a 9-1 lead, and Vincent ended the game with an RBI single to center field in the bottom of the fifth inning.
“No words,” Vincent said when asked to describe the feeling of winning Grace’s first softball state title. “It’s a dream.”
“It’s a dream come true,” said junior pitcher Rylee Guillot, who missed last year’s state tournament with an injury.
Grace Christian coach Mark Rosier was no stranger to Sulphur or the pressure that comes with the state softball tournament. Rosier won two state titles with Oak Hill, the last of which came in 2000, and returned to Sulphur multiple times while coaching at Alexandria Senior High and Buckeye.
“This is a history-maker for (Grace),” Rosier said. “I guess it just solidifies everything we stand for – hard work, loyalty, sticking together, doing your part for the team – and all that just gonna pay off in the end.”
Rosier said Guillot’s return to the circle this season helped to raise the confidence level of everybody on the team. The Lady Warriors took that confidence onto the field Saturday and didn’t play like a team that had never been in a state championship game.
“The last speech that I gave them before the game, I said, ‘The Lord gave you the talent. He put you in this place. It’s your day. Let’s go do it,’” Rosier said.
And do it, they did, despite a start that could be described as less than ideal.
Family Community (15-10) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when pitcher Jadyn Hutchinson singled on a hard hit to left field that was misplayed, allowing Hutchinson to race around the bases and score.
But before the Warriors from Winnsboro could threaten again, Grace had the game firmly in hand. Family Community added a second run in the fourth inning when Hannah Brown tripled and scored on a groundout, but by then the Lady Warriors led 9-2.
Just as they did in a 9-4 semifinal victory over St. Joseph’s of Plaucheville on Friday, when they ripped three doubles and two triples, the Lady Warriors pounded out six extra-base hits in the championship game.
Vincent went a combined 7-for-8 on the weekend with a triple, two doubles, seven RBIs and three runs scored. Leadoff batter Sydney Avery had three triples and a double over the two games with four RBIs and four runs scored.
“I was ready to win,” Vincent said.
“She’s one of our most humble players,” Rosier said of Vincent. “For her to have a great day like this, it means all the world. I’m so happy for her.”
Rosier credited the team’s only senior, shortstop Ava Guillot, for her leadership in helping the Lady Warriors to the championship. A year after stepping in as pitcher after her younger sister’s injury, the senior Guillot locked in down the stretch at the plate and in the field.
“Ava’s not a real outspoken player,” Rosier said. “She just goes out there and does her job. Again, the last two weeks you could just see a difference in her eyes – how focused she was, listening, hanging onto every word, helping the young ones stay focused. It’s just been unbelievable. It’s just been a great ride the last few weeks.”