As the old saying goes, the third time’s the charm,.that statement definitely applies to the Camp Verde softball team.
After the Cowboys fell in their last two championship appearances in 2016 and 2018, Camp Verde defeated the Benson Bobcats 10-7 in the 2A state championship on Tuesday, May 14.
Benson led 6-2 in the seventh inning but the Cowboys battled back to score eight runs in the games deciding inning.
The Cowboys’ .493 batting average led the state and their bats came through when called upon.
thirteen batters came to the plate for Camp Verde as the Cowboys registered five hits along with three Benson errors.
Junior Hailey Moore’s base clearing hit gave the Cowboys an 8-6 and put Camp Verde up for good against Benson.
Countless Cowboys fans came out to support Camp Verde at the Alberta B. Farrington Softball Stadium.
Jacy Finley pitched a no-hitter through 4.2 innings and earned the win for Camp Verde.
With the win, Finley finishes the season at 12-1.
In Finley’s three years with the Cowboys, she has accumulated a 48-12 record and only a 2.81 earned run average.
“We had tremendous leadership on this team from both my staff and in the player,” Camp Verde coach Henry Smith said. “Our players were willing to follow our staff’s leadership, and our staff is unconditionally behind me.”
Last year, Camp Verde advanced to the state title game before falling to Benson 7-3 on May 8, 2018.
With the win, the Cowboys finish the year at 24-7 and were a perfect 10-0 in conference play.
After losing a 3-2 nail-biter to Sunnyslope on Saturday, April 6, the Cowboys would not lose another game for the remainder of the season.
Camp Verde entered the playoffs as the three-seed and promptly went to work.
The Cowboys shut out their first three playoff opponents, outscoring them 28-0 in the process.
The Cowboys advanced to state after on Friday, May 10, defeating Trivium Prep 4-0 in the 2A semifinals.
Benson ends the season at 30-4 and had their 17-game winning streak snapped by the Cowboys.
Stockseth led the entire 2A region with 31 stolen bases and placed second with 12 home runs.
Senior Katie Sherman took the mound for Benson and registered a 9.33 earned run average against Camp Verde.
Sherman pitched six innings and allowed nine hits and three walks and struck out five Cowboys batters.
With the loss, Sherman dropped her record to 29-3 this season.
For the Cowboys seniors, it was their fourth consecutive final four appearance and last shot at a title.
Camp Verde boasted five seniors on their roster this season and each had been instrumental in getting the Cowboys back to the title game.
“We had four returning seniors that experienced our state championship run who were huge in helping the younger players,” Smith said. “They shared their knowledge and experience,which was huge for us.”
The Cowboys quartet of Sockseth, Miranda Sharp, Tyra Smith and Carlee Oesterreigh all played on the 2016 state runner-up team.
Each Camp Verde senior earned 2A Central all-region honors this season.
When these two teams squared off earlier this season, Benson defeated the Cowboys 6-5 on
March 15 in the Gracie Lee Haught Classic.
“Our defense did a solid job all season of communicatingand complementing each other on the field,” Smith said.
The Cowboys title also gives the softball team three total championships as Camp Verde won it all in 2009 and 1981.
“It is a complete program and I could not be happier with things,” Smith said.
Benson was seeking its third consecutive championship and sixth title since 2006.
