Camp Verde High School’s softball team made it to the state championship game for the second time in three seasons after a 3-0 win over No. 3 Willcox High School on Saturday, May 5, at Rose Mofford Softball Complex.
For the second time in as many days, the No. 2 seeded Cowboys [19-1, 9-0 Central Region] seized the sparse opportunities it had to score runs. Their defense held the Cowgirls [16-4, 9-3 East Region] to just two baserunners in scoring position.
“It’s just taking advantage of the opportunities. We’ve always talked about being patient and letting the game come to you and our girls are showing some maturity right now,” Camp Verde head coach Henry Smith said. “We’re on a good heater and it feels good to see the girls execute something we’ve worked on all season.”
The victory extended the Cowboys’ winning streak to 15. They played for the 2A state title against No. 1 seed Benson High School on Tuesday, May 8, at Arizona State University’s Farrington Softball Stadium. Results were unavailable at press time.
The semifinal marked the third straight game that the Cowboys faced off with an unknown opponent. The unfamiliarity has not added any sort of doubt, but rather excitement.
“It’s exciting, the adrenaline that you get when you play someone that you really don’t know anything about,” Cowboys junior third baseman Tyra Smith said. “You know that they’re good, but it’s exciting to play someone that you’ve got to play how the game goes, just go with the flow.”
Just like the 5-2 quarterfinal victory over No. 7 Trivium Preparatory Academy the night before, both teams frustrated one another with pitching and defense. Camp Verde retired the first four Willcox batters and nine of the first 10. 
Cowboys sophomore pitcher Jacy Finley had another good game, scattering three hits while striking out 12 and walking two.
A couple of Finley’s strikeouts came during the Cowgirls’ biggest threat, in the sixth inning, to maintain the shutout with a 1-0 lead. Willcox junior shortstop Samantha Kortsen followed up her one-out single with a stolen base to get into scoring position.
Cowgirls junior second baseman Gabby Acosta drew a walk to put the go-ahead run on base. Finley struck out the next batter. After Kortsen stole third to put the game-tying run a base hit away from scoring, Finley got the inning-ending punchout to nullify the threat.
“I just thought that I needed to throw harder, think about it before I did it. I just had to think about it harder and put everything I can into it,” Finley said. “I knew that I had a good defensive team to back me up and everything, and I was confident.”
Camp Verde freshman shortstop Jenna Huey has been the provider of clutch hits in key games. Huey’s leadoff double in the second inning put the Cowboys in a prime scoring position. Although she was tagged out on a fielder’s choice, it let Finley reach base on an infield ground ball.
Cowboys freshman Chelsey Battise, Finley’s courtesy runner, eventually scored the game-winning run later in the inning. Camp Verde senior catcher Jade Oium drove the RBI single into right field after Battise reached second on a passed ball. Willcox’s fielders mismanaged the relay, allowing Battise extra time to score.
Willcox’s defense had also kept Camp Verde from adding more runs throughout the middle innings. The Cowboys found their chance to tack on its runs in the bottom of the sixth, and made it count.
Tyra Smith singled and sophomore right fielder Hailey Moore doubled Smith home in the next at-bat. Moore advanced to third base on an error, and Huey delivered again with a sacrifice fly to center field for the third run.
Finley struck out the first two Cowgirls batters in the seventh, before nabbing the game-clinching popout.
Remaining focused on themselves, rather than their opponent, hashelped the Cowboys to success. The team that starts six underclassmen has held its poise in the key moments.
“We stress the importance of working hard in the offseason, so that when it comes to this point that they’re prepared to play,” Henry Smith said. “They’re ready, they’re ready to play, and they’re not looking to prove anything. They’re just looking to play their best, and that’s important for these young girls to understand — that we’re just here to play for ourselves and that’s it. It’s not about anything other than our team, and they’re all in.”
A story on the Conference 2A state championship game can be found in next week’s Camp Verde Journal.
