Trinity Christian softball to make first state tournament appearance in program history
The Warriors enter the week as the Region I champion and will face off against top-ranked Pendleton County (29-2) at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday to begin play.
'For the players to have reached this point to be among the final four teams is remarkable,' TCS assistant coach Dan Lohmann said, who will act as head coach at the state tournament due to scheduling conflicts with head coach Bryan Phillips. 'There has been a steady build of the program, and I'm not sure we thought this would be possible in our fourth year since the program restarted. That just speaks to the player's belief in themselves and their teammates.'
The Warriors are making their inaugural appearance in the state tournament, marking a significant milestone for a program that was reestablished just four years ago. During the 2022 and 2023 seasons, Trinity Christian School (TCS) secured only a single victory. Before the current season, the program's most recent sectional championship occurred in 2010. Trinity concluded the regular season ranked ninth in the MetroNews Coaches Poll.
'We want our girls to have the same approach of being resilient and to stick together when things aren't going our way,' Lohmann said. 'They have been able to come back from some type of deficit in all five games this postseason. Sometimes when the stage is bigger, we feel like we have to do more, but we want them to have the mindset of doing the same things that got us here.'
Pendleton County enters the tournament as the Region II champion. The Wildcats have held the top spot in the MetroNews Coaches Poll for the final three weeks of the regular season and lead the state with 29 victories. Their only two losses have come against state tournament qualifiers from higher classifications. The Wildcats have outscored their postseason opponents by a combined margin of 57-4 over four games.
'Pendleton County is an excellent team,' Lohmann said. 'We need to be able to play sound defense, communicate clearly, and take advantage of any opportunities we may have at the plate.'
TCS finished regular-season play with an 8-10 record and was in the midst of a six-game losing streak. Despite this, the Warriors have demonstrated a remarkable turnaround, compiling a perfect 5-0 record in sectional and regional competition. In their regional championship victory over Magnolia, Trinity overcame a three-run deficit in the seventh inning to secure a 9-8 win.
The Warriors are currently averaging 8.6 runs per game. Josalyn Phillips leads the team offensively with a batting average of .479, along with a team-high eight home runs and 33 runs batted in. Pitcher Paige Hopkins enters the state tournament with a 3.64 earned run average.
While some may say the Warriors will be happy just to be making an appearance, Lohmann knows his players have a fire in them to win games, and the state tournament does nothing but stoke the flames.
'I think these girls have enjoyed proving something to themselves and being able to stand tall with other top-notch programs,' he said. 'We have asked them to take steps in overcoming challenges throughout the entire year, and to watch that grow in these players and the team has been incredibly rewarding.'
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