Elite eight: St. Thomas More captures eighth softball title by winning Division I select championship

Converse outlasts Quitman, 2-1, in nine innings to claim Division V non-select crown

By Mike Coppage 

SULPHUR, La. - St. Thomas More softball coach Andria Waguespack can't wait to perform some carpentry work at her team's field in the near future.

Every day at practice, the Lady Cougars are reminded of their storied past. There are seven signs along the outfield fence, one for each state title. Each sign lists the year of the championship and that team's record.

Soon, there will be eight.

Shyanne Irvin's towering two-RBI home run to straightaway center field in the fifth inning put the Cougars ahead to stay, and pitchers Ava Prejean and Margaret Oge combined on a three hitter in a 7-3 win against Tioga in the Division I select finals on Saturday.

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"I don't know if there are exact words to describe it," said Waguespack, when asked to describe her post-game feelings. "I'm just so excited for these kids; they've been so awesome all year. They've really grown a lot through all the challenges we've faced."

Second-seeded Tioga (22-4) challenged STM (33-3), but the Lady Cougars were quick with the counterpunch.

In the top of the third inning, Abbi Troquille's solo homer gave the Lady Indians a 1-0 lead. In the bottom half of the frame, STM scored twice with two outs.

Ari Townsend scored on Kennedy Stutes' RBI single. Stutes came around on an RBI single from Irvin, who added another RBI on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth.

"We competed (Saturday)," Waguespack said. "We fought hard and never gave up. We kept punching. You can't let one punch knock you down. It's about getting back up.

"They got some big hits. They had the big home run, but we didn't back down."

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In the bottom of the fourth, Addison Lafferty scored on one of four Tioga errors to lengthen the lead to 3-1. In the top of the fifth, Kaitlyn Roberts' two-run double tied it up, which led to Irvin's big blow in the bottom half of the frame.

"I was expecting a drop ball, because that's what their pitcher had been working through all game, but she left it right up there in the zone for me to hit," said Irvin, a sophomore catcher who finished the year with 12 home runs.

St. Thomas More's Shyanne Irvin was named the Most Outstanding Player following her team's Division I select championship win on April 29, 2023. 

Prejean threw five innings to get the win with Oge tossing two perfect innings in relief. The two also teamed up in Friday's semifinal win against Archbishop Chappelle. 

With most of the 20 programs in Sulphur exclusively riding one arm, Waguespack was glad to have two. She even had a third arm, if needed, in senior Camille Meaux.

"Gabbie Pirtle, my pitching coach, does a fantastic job with the staff," Waguespack said. "I don't fool with the pitching. The girls trust Gabbie. They buy into what she does."

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Kennedy Stutes, Gabbie Stutes, Meredith Fontenot and Townsend each had a hit. Kennedy Stutes' RBI single in the sixth inning scored Gabbie Stutes.

"We hit the ball hard," Waguespack said. "Some of them were right at Tioga players.

"You can't say enough about Shyanne Irvin. She hit it right on the button all weekend. We did what we had to do to score runs."

Irvin was named Most Outstanding Player. 

Converse photo by Converse LadyCat Softball Facebook page 

Division V non-select championship

Converse 2, Quitman 1 (9 innings)

The Converse Lady Wildcats have a flair for the dramatic.

In the Division V non-select semifinals on Friday, Avery Prine's two-run walk-off homer lifted the Sabine Parish program to a 3-1 win against Choudrant and a berth in Saturday's championship game versus No. 2 Quitman.

The fourth-seeded Lady Wildcats (25-7) did it again in the finals with a 2-1 win against Quitman in nine innings.

Quitman scored its run in the bottom of the first inning. Cali Deal, who had two of her team's four hits, doubled and scored.

From there, Prine locked things down, finishing with 17 strikeouts.

In the top of the ninth, Abby Friday doubled on a 1-2 count to score Prine. Summer Brumley added a double for Converse.

Then in the bottom of the ninth, Prine retired the side with a groundout and two strikeouts.

Deal was brilliant in the circle as well, allowing three hits and one earned run with no walks and 12 strikeouts. Quitman finished the year with a 29-7 record.

Converse won its third state title. 

Photo of Converse's Avery Prine by Converse LadyCat Softball Facebook page