Photo by S.C. High School League
By Thomas Grant Jr.
It was “Mission Accomplished” for the Gray Collegiate Academy softball team.
By repeating as Class 4A champion while going undefeated at 34-0, the Lady War Eagles completed two goals set going into the post-season.
“I think undefeated and state champions sounds good,” Gray Collegiate Academy junior and reigning State Player of the Year Aspen Boulware said. “I think that the ultimate goal is to be state champions and the way we’ve done that is being undefeated and working hard and winning every game. That’s what got us here. So, I think, hopefully, we’ll be able to finish it in two and not need a third game and stayed undefeated and be state champions.”
The Lady War Eagles took care of business with a sweep of A.C. Flora in the state final. In winning a third consecutive state title and fourth in the last five years, they also their winning streak to 36 games in a row.
This surpassed South Florence for fourth place in S.C. High School League history. Hillcrest (2002-04) holds the state record with 96 wins and its 2002 team is third all-time (40) with Crescent (1991-93) second with 67 victories.
“We had a goal this year to go undefeated and win every game,” head coach Doug Frye said. “I know that’s crazy, but we took it one game at a time and these girls bought into it and stayed focus on what we were doing the whole year and we did it.
“It’s amazing. 34-0. It’s crazy.”
Both victories in the finals were similar in margin of the two over the Lady Falcons during the regular season. In each game, Peyton Hendrix posted 10 strikeouts and held A.C. Flora to just one run.
Game 1, which was postponed Tuesday in the Top 4th inning due to thunderstorms before resuming Wednesday, was a 7-1 win at home. The Lady War Eagles had just seven hits, two by Payton Reed and two RBI by Mackenzie Sease.
In Friday’s 11-1 victory, Sease ignited the Gray Collegiate Academy offense. She belted a solo home run in her first at-bat as the Lady War Eagles took a 3-0 lead.
An inning later, Sease cleared the bases with a 3-run homer to make it 6-0. The Lady Eagles extended their lead to 8-0 before the Lady Falcons got on the board with a bases loaded walk.
Ella Gordon added two more runs as she scored off a Mackenzi Bradley single and a wild pitch.
In the Top 7th, Boulware closed out her high school career in fitting fashion. The University of South Carolina signee sent a 2-1 pitch over the rightfield wall for her 12th home run of the season.
Hendrix recorded the final three outs on strikeouts to end the game and an historic season for Gray Collegiate Academy. It now turns its attention to moving up to Class 5A and Region V.
“I love this group,” Frye said. “They’ve been great all year. “For three in a row, that’s awesome. They keep rolling and rolling and we’re not going anywhere. We’ve got a bunch of younger kids who can play.”
“It’s amazing,” Frye said. “34-0. That’s crazy.”
Pitcher Peyton Hendrix started both games in the finals. She posted 10 strikeouts in each contest while allowing only two runs.
