The Mansfield Baseball and Softball programs went through their regular season play unnoticed by the rest of the state. Although Mansfield plays in the 2A-4, which is considered by many as a “weak” conference on the diamond, winning is winning and no one can deny championship gold no matter how the competition is perceived. The Tigers and Lady Tigers knew that respect had to be earned so gold is what they gathered. Mansfield dug up more gold on Friday, April 29th as the Tigers defeated Acorn 11-1 and the Lady Tigers defeated Lavaca 7-0 giving both teams a complete sweep of the 2A-4 for both the Conference and District Championships.
The Lady Tigers took to their game in a slow but methodical fashion. They weren’t the home run mad bombers that fans are used to seeing, but the plan was to not become a one-trick pony going into the Regional Tournament. Therefore Mansfield worked on their in-the-park hits and overall defense to smooth out their game. Alyson Edwards had a “pitch-perfect” game as she threw a three-hit shutout along with 10 strikeouts against Lavaca. If by chance Lavaca did connect on an Edwards pitch, the Lady Tigers were there to shut it down. Infield hits were cut off by Ambria Whittaker, Cole Smith, Trinity Triska, and catcher Brooklyn Adams. The outfielders did their job also with Kynslee Ward, Natalie Allison, and Harley Fuller snagging any softball that dared to come their way. A dominant performance by Mansfield in a 7-0 shutout of Lavaca kept the Lady Tigers undefeated in 2A-4 conference play and earned them the Conference and District titles.
Head Coach Donnie Eveld had nothing but good to say about his team after the win. “The girls played really well last night and were focused on the task at hand. Offensively we put the ball in play and got big hits when we needed them. Brooklyn Adams went 2-3 with a two-run double, Kynslee Ward was 1-2 with an RBI and scored, and Trinity Triska stepped up to go 1-2 for our offense. Alyson did what she does best by pitching 10 strikeouts and our defense showed that they have really come around quite well since the start of the season.”
Mansfield’s baseball team completed their 2A-4 gauntlet Friday night also with an 11-1 route of the Acorn Tigers. The Tigers jumped out to a 2-0 lead over Acorn in the first inning and never looked back from there. Base hitting and base stealing are what got the Tigers to the District Championship game, so that’s exactly what the Tigers continued to do. The entire batting lineup seemed to take advantage of Acorn’s mistakes to jump ahead base by base. The offense was clicking so well around mid-game that a Mansfield batter even dropped the bat at the plate and move out of the way for Peyton Martin to slide into home. Line drives by Braxton Byers and Trey Vaughan helped Mansfield continue working the bases throughout the game. The Tigers ace pitcher, Drew Elmore, threw an impeccable game for the Tigers as he painted every corner of the batter’s box in each inning leading to strikeout after strikeout. The Tigers’ win sets them up for a good Regional Tournament run as well as earning them the Conference and District Championships to tack on to the 2A-4 undefeated season.
“Last night was probably one of our more complete games of the year. We pitched well, played great defense, and did well with our bats last night,” said Head Coach Layton Robinson. “Everyone in the lineup made an impact whether it was at the plate, pitching, or on the mound.”
If teams across the state didn’t think Mansfield was a contender for the baseball and softball State Championships, they’d better look again. Mansfield’s overall diamond program is a back-to-back Conference and District Champion program that has set up and knocked down every 2A opponent they’ve faced. Next up for the Tigers and Lady Tigers will be the Regional Tournament. Mansfield will host the Regionals and both teams will be aiming to solidify their place in the minds of all 2A baseball and softball teams in the great state of Arkansas.
