Castle softball showed why it's ranked No. 1 with dominant sectional championship victory
EVANSVILLE — Castle coach Pat Lockyear has never had a lineup quite like this.
It sounds blasphemous, yes. Castle is one of the premier softball programs in Southern Indiana with Lockyear ranking second in state history for career wins. The Knights won a state championship in 2001. There was still zero hesitation.
"It's the most talent I've ever had," said Lockyear.
More: Scores, schedule for IHSAA softball sectionals across Southwestern Indiana
The performance this season and this week potentially confirm it. Castle defeated North 13-0 to win the Class 4A sectional championship on Thursday. The No. 1 Knights (27-5) will host Floyd Central or Jeffersonville in the regional next week.
The latest victory was their 14th double-digit run total. The lineup doesn't have a single easy out.
"Who do you want to pitch to in our lineup?" Lockyear said. "We're just extremely deep, but talent doesn't win. You have to be able to play. They've done that. We're not perfect and don't play completely error-free games all the time. But on top of the talent, they're mentally tough."
The sectional was anticlimactic with all four games decided by mercy rule in five innings. Part of it was the matchups produced by the blind draw. Part of it was the Knights. Including an 11-1 victory against Reitz in the semifinal, Sadie Winsett and Gigi Lynch combined to allow only six hits in 10 innings.
North (16-13) tried every possible combination with three pitchers in the championship. Castle still recorded 13 hits including five extra-base knocks. Maddie Rose, a freshman, blasted a two-run bomb to center in the third inning. It was the 50th long ball, long past shattering the program record for a single season, from the Knights this spring.
Emma Bruggenschmidt was 3 for 4 with a triple and Rose plated four runs. Sadie Winsett and Emma Boyer also had multiple hits. Lydia Stowe drove in three runs including a tone-setting two-run double in the first. Castle scored a run in every sectional inning across two games.
"There really isn't an easy out," said Stowe. "There is so much talent on this team. We work hard and push each other every single day in practice. We all support each other no matter what."
There are notable stars. Bruggenschmidt is batting .522 with 25 extra-base hits for example. Why Lockyear views this team so highly is the depth. Seven players have hit at least four home runs – Aubrey Baker has eight in the seven spot – with a team batting average of .407. The Knights also received bonuses with Rose better than expected and senior Aleyna Quinn providing a spark at the bottom of the order and defensively in her only season.
"It was very stressful at first," said Rose. "The girls were very welcoming and it's been a really good experience. We have a very tough lineup to get through. It was a very good win for us."
The only question was the rust versus rest argument. The Knights went 11 days between games after weather canceled games late in the season. Lockyear now calls it a blessing after the grinding through April and early May. His players were still bothering him to pick up an opponent last week.
More: No. 1 Gibson Southern softball makes a statement with Class 3A sectional title performance
Castle has lost only one game since April 20, and it was against Kentucky power Henderson County at home.
"We play a brutal schedule," said Lockyear. "We're really busy and play a lot of games. They were chomping and wanted to get a game. Not playing was an advantage. I was more encouraged by the fact they were concerned about it."
Heritage Hills gets revenge in Class 3A sectional championship
The Patriots won their second sectional title in three years with a 1-0 victory over Jasper in Sectional 31 at Southridge. Taylor Fisher went 2 for 3 at the plate including a RBI single to score Mia Kiegel in the sixth inning.
It comes a year after losing a wild 15-14 championship game to the Wildcats. Heritage Hills threatened to end the game early that night with a 13-6 lead after four innings. Rylie Schipp, who was injured last year, pitched a shutout on Thursday with eight strikeouts.
Heritage Hills (22-8) travels to No. 1 Gibson Southern for the regional. The Titans won the regular season meeting 12-10 on April 20.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Castle wins Class 4A IHSAA softball sectional championship
