This year’s Class B State Softball Tournament field looks familiar and balanced as teams head into play today at the Players South Complex.
More than half of this year’s teams were in the state tourney a year ago including Alcester-Hudson, Castlewood, Deuel, Florence-Henry and Gayville-Volin. Last week’s SoDak 16 action saw two-higher seeded teams knocked off, so any team in this year’s tourney appears more than capable of making a run at the state championship.
“I’ll tell ya, there’s eight teams here that could win on any day from what I can see,” said Castlewood coach Craig Horn. “You watch any of the scores of any of those games where they played each other, and they’re all competitive games.”
The Warriors won the first ever state title in 2023, were runner up in 2024, and look to take the title back this year.
“I’d be lying if I said that we didn’t expect to be back in this position,” Horn said. “Teams have gotten a lot better, so it’s been good. Our girls have been working hard all year, and it feels good to get back to the state tournament.”
Castlewood will take on the sixth-seeded Gayville-Volin, which has the same record as the Warriors at 15-4. Not only are the records identical, the two teams are nearly a mirror image of each other.
“They’re a good team from what we’ve seen and been able to decipher from the film or other scores,” said Horn. “They remind us a lot of us, so it should be a really good game.”
The Warriors look to rely on a complete game of softball to take them deep again this year.
“Our defense has been strong all year. Pitching and defense have been our strengths,” Horn said. “But we can hit up and down the line up, too. If everyone comes ready to go, we will make some stuff out, I know that.”
With any of the state tourney teams within striking distance of the title, Horn said that the mental side of the game will help his team achieve what it couldn’t last year.
“It really just comes down to the mental preparation. I felt like last year in that championship game, that failure belongs in my responsibility. We gotta make sure we correct that, and I know we will,” Horn said. “The girls are more than capable, but so are seven other teams here. Margin of error is gonna be tight and it’s gonna come down to the little things.”
Deuel (19-2) goes into the tournament as the top seed behind standout pitcher Katrina Hagberg, who struck out 17 batters and allowed just one hit in a SoDak 16 victory last week. The Cardinals will take on eighth-seeded Avon (15-10), which eliminated last year’s state champion Chester in the SoDak 16.
Mobridge-Pollock (11-5), the seventh seed, meets second-seeded Bon Homme (12-3), and fourth-seeded Alcester-Hudson (16-3) plays fifth-seeded Florence-Henry (16-3).
