Valley Center senior Sykora Smith launched a line drive over the left field wall of Wichita State University’s Wilkins Stadium in the bottom of the sixth inning Friday to pretty much seal the deal in the KSHSAA Class 5A softball state championship game.
Then, Ark Valley Chisholm Trail League foe Goddard Eisenhower loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the seventh, giving some life to the Tigers as they sent one of the hottest-hitting players to the plate in junior Karlee Ford.
Ford lit up a pitch from senior Tori Turner, which went right into the glove of senior Lucy Hooper, who the stepped on second base and threw to third for the triple play, which put the nail in the coffin to claim Valley Center’s second straight state softball title, beating Eisenhower 16-8.
All Hornets head coach Corey Jones could do was laugh and enjoy the stunning play.
“I probably can say that the state championship has never ended on a triple play to win the championship," Jones said. “But who knows?”
Smith’s grand slam was the second grand slam against Eisenhower in the state tournament in two years. Last season, Maci George – a senior this year committed to North Texas – hit a grand slam in the state semifinals against the Tigers. Prior to Smith’s at-bat Friday, Eisenhower was within striking distance.
When the moment came, Smith seized it.
“That gave us some insurance there for sure,” Jones said. “It got everybody fired up, and to see that in the second-to-last inning is just awesome for the girls.”
In the regular season, Eisenhower and Valley Center split their league doubleheader, Eisenhower taking game one 5-1 and Valley Center winning game two 5-2 and led to the Hornets and Tigers splitting the league title. Smith used a basketball reference to sum up the Wichita-area state title matchup.
“It’s hard to beat somebody three times,” Smith said. “It’s hard to beat somebody two times, but we knew deep down that we would show up this game. We were the better team, and we had the most energy, and we knew in our hearts we should win this game.”
In the title game, Smith went 4-for-5 at the plate with three runs scored, five RBIs, and the grand slam. As a team, the Hornets outhit the Tigers 18-10 in what seemed to not be a pitcher’s game. But for Valley Center’s Turner, it worked out well for her in the circle, especially late in the game.
Turner entered the game in the top of the third after Eisenhower scored four runs in the second to cut what was a 6-1 lead down to 6-5. Ford hit a two-run home run. Turner was stellar, allowing just three runs (all in the fifth inning), striking out three batters including one with the bases loaded, and earned the win.
“I did not think I was going to make it through that game,” Turner said. “I was gassed, but without my team and the amazing fanbase that we had here, I couldn’t have done it. It was just crazy.
“I had to keep fighting for them. That’s why I got emotional out there because I know they had my back and I had theirs.”
When Eisenhower clawed back in the top of the fifth and made it a one-run game again, George batted a line drive to right field for an RBI single to score Turner and Hooper to make it 11-8, Hornets. George went 3-for-4 on the night with four RBIs and four runs scored. With two outs in the inning, junior Morgan Thatcher stretched the lead to four with a ground-ball RBI single, scoring senior Ainsley Kraus.
Valley Center finished the year 23-2. Eisenhower, the third-place winner the previous two seasons, concluded its year 19-6.
“It means absolutely everything in the world,” George said on winning back-to-back state titles. “We’ve all grown up together, and it really means a lot to us."