After dropping their first game of the All “A” Classic State Tournament on Saturday evening against Lyon County, the Owensboro Catholic Lady Aces had the mindset of win or go home as they battled back, eventually setting up a rematch with the Lady Lyons in Sunday’s championship.
In a game that featured several lead changes, it was Lyon County that emerged victorious as they took down the Lady Aces 10-9 for their first All “A” Classic state title in program history.
To get to their matchup with the Lyons, Catholic had to beat Holy Cross Sunday morning in their final pool play game, then take down Middlesboro and Bethlehem in bracket play to make it to the final.
Catholic coach Jeremy Phelps said he’s proud of his team and he had one message for them after the game.
“They competed,” he said. “They could have got down, they could have quit after that first game last night. That’s what we told them last night. We turned it into a single-elimination tournament and you fought all the way back. We used different lineups throughout the day. The core stayed together but we tried different lineups. We used different pitchers and they all pitched well. Nothing to hang their heads on. It was a good game. It was back-and-forth, high scoring. Both teams made plays on offense and defense. I told them to keep their heads up high.
“We’ll get better in the long run because of this. These kinds of tournaments here build confidence. That’s a good team (Lyon), that’s a real good team. I’m proud of the way we played.”
After going 2-1 in pool play, Catholic never trailed in its first two games of bracket play as they outscored their opponents 25-0 and only allowed two hits.
With only a few players having big time tournament experience, Phelps said this weekend will do a lot for his players going forward.
“You have younger players with 13 games under their belt coming into this,” he said. “Getting another six games this weekend, the more you play together, they build confidence in each other. It doesn’t matter if we’ve got confidence in them but when those girls have confidence in each other and instead of playing for themselves, now they’re playing as a team, they’re playing for each other. You could see that more and more this weekend. You can see how that was working.”
Throughout the tournament, Catholic had different players step up in key situations.
Whether it was Hannah Carter’s two home runs against Middlesboro or Bailey Hamilton’s three total home runs in the final two games, including one in the championship, the Lady Aces got quality hits and stops from several spots in their lineup.
Phelps said that was one of the keys from their first game against Lyon County.
“They believed,” he said. “This school, Owensboro Catholic, they compete, the whole school. I don’t care what sport it is. They’re known because they will compete. That’s what I love about coaching this team. They’re a joy when you get them like this. It’s a pleasure. They fight, they could have quit many times … They come back and it was somebody different. It wasn’t the same girl every game, it was someone different.”
Despite not achieving their ultimate goal, Phelps said it’s still a weekend they’ll be able to look back on.
“I think that’s the biggest thing,” he said. “They’ll remember this. They may not remember all the plays but they’ll remember this weekend … We’ve gotten better this weekend.”
Catholic’s Hadley Phelps, Bailey Hamilton, Camille Conkright and Hannah Carter were named to the All-Tournament Team.
The Lady Aces play Saturday against Warren East in the Owensboro Catholic Classic.
