Manuel Flores: Calallen's state softball title leaves legacy for Corpus Christi

AUSTIN — “State champs!”

The words rang out of the Calallen Wildcats softball coach Teresa Lentz with an air of a job accomplished and a goal fulfilled. Her team had defeated Liberty in a hard-fought contest at Red and Charline McCombs Field, 9-7, to claim the Class 4A state softball championship. Amidst roars and applause, the word spread throughout the stadium.

A legacy had been reached after years of hard work and hope.

“We’ve done it,” Lentz said to everyone and no one.

She jumped from player-to-player, and holding back tears of joy and satisfaction, hugging them and saying “good job” and “thank you.”

As unbelievable as it sounded, Calallen had just become the first team from the city of Corpus Christi to claim a state softball title.

“This is what we’ve been working for,” she said, accepting congratulations from Wildcats fans. “We are now part of history and no one can take that away from us.”

The journey was long and difficult.

As a veteran sports writer who has covered more than a dozen state championship games I can tell you it’s not easy without leadership and good coaching, it won’t happen. I’ve seen success and failure on the diamond and ballfield. Teresa Lentz is my daughter. This is a legacy that she wants to build not only for the Calallen softball program but for all the area and surrounding schools.

This was the third trip to the final game of the season for the Wildcats under coach Lentz. They were runners-up in 2019 (in 5A) and 2021 (in 4A). Now they will face Liberty, the team that defeated them in the title game in 2021. Advancing to the state title game in any sport in Texas high school sports is hard. The end result, is a tribute to hard work, perseverance and confidence.

'Legacy Championship'

The first two were ‘’special,” Lentz said before the start of the final game. She called it a “Legacy Championship” for her team and South Texas.

“It’s about changing the face of South Texas Softball,” Lentz said. “(Santa Gertrudis Academy) did a great job in representing South Texas at the State Tournament. For softball to start getting the respect that we deserve we have to WIN.”

Lentz starts her season every year by telling her team its goal is to win the state title. She is usually met with silence.

“The girls are ready for the challenge and see the disrespect in their opponents when they play us,“ she said.

Lentz was was an All-America shortstop and Player of the Year in the Lone Star Conference at Texas Woman’s University and an All-State shortstop at Miller High School, and said the key then is to work harder and be mentally tough and playing selfless.

“Our practices are fundamental and repetitive and fast,” she explained. “The coaching staff never lets them stop working hard. It’s about building desire and team spirit and a belief in their team. It’s their team, we just coach them and help them come together one day at a time and we want to play our best in the end.”

Lentz said that one of the key ingredients to success is “making her team believe that their efforts and hard work is bigger than themselves.”

Somewhere along the way Lentz and her staff instill a sense of community pride on the team.

“They’re playing for their parents, sisters, brothers and school," Lentz said. "They are playing to prove everyone who doubted them but most importantly everyone who believed in them RIGHT.”

Fully realizing that it still takes talent to win — especially a state championship — Lentz reflected on this year’s team.

“Each season and each team is different. The coaching staff usually has a set of returnees and key players to work with,” she said. “This year we didn’t. We didn’t have set starters, a regular pitcher and lost catcher Brooklynn Meador, out early in the season with ACL injury.”

Building on past success

Lentz said she felt there was nothing to build on but past success.

Some of the girls on this year’s team were familiar with the winning tradition, having attended games and state title contests in 2019 and 2021 while in middle school.

“It’s exciting to think about the girls that will be coming up,” she said. “They are watching and setting goals for themselves when they get to high school.”

Heartache came early to the team this season when they lost Meador to the a season-ending knee injury.

“She had experience and was going to be one of our leaders. Now, we had to do without her,” Lentz said.

But soon a trend emerged. Freshman Audryna Almaraz stepped up and took her place.

“Our freshmen had to step up,” Lentz said. “The know they have to be ready if they’re called up to play.”

Soon a starting pitcher emerged — Jordyn Thibodeaux, a lanky confident hurler with a fastball and change-up that kept batters off balance. She needed to develop her control and understand pitching situations.

Thanks to coach Vianca Pesina, one of the best pitching coaches in the region and state, she gave the Wildcats’ hitters time to develop as the season progressed. Thibodeaux finished the regular season 13-2, and she is now 21-2. Her losses were to District 31-4A champ Alice and District 29-5A champ Flour Bluff.

In the meantime, four other freshmen earned starting positions, including catcher Audryna Almaraz, first baseman Braelyn Bailey and outfielder Kayden Trevino. They provided the power and consistency at the plate to help the team navigate through tough District 31-4A and Region IV.

“We were heading into the playoffs and that’s all that mattered,” Lentz said. “But our goal was always to peak in the end. We don’t need to be our best now, we need to be our best later.”

Showing leadership

Meanwhile the letter winners on the team started showing leadership. They believed and they would win it all only if they could get those newcomers to buy into the program.

“We had good leadership from our upper classman. They provided stability and confidence. They didn’t let the young ones quit on themselves,” Lentz said.

By the time the regular season was over, their freshmen were clicking on defense and hitting for extra bases.

Veteran Players such as junior shortstop Meagan Geyer, junior third baseman Alaunah Almaraz, junior second baseman Makenzie Mounts, junior outfielder Mia Flores and Rilyn Gamez, and senior pitcher/designated player Ryanna Rodela, Gabby Carrion and Kaitlin Tagle all hit .300 or better.

“It came together the second round of playoffs. When they started to play for each other for something bigger,” Lentz said.

By noon Saturday, the Wildcats had survived a magical and mystical season overcoming inexperience, a devastating injury to a key player and a tough district and regional schedule that surprised doubters and the team as well.

“They started to believe after we beat district champs Sinton Pirates in the playoffs and shortly after that it started to come together,” Lentz said.

Now that season of believing has finished with the first softball state championship for a team from the city of Corpus Christi.

And, somehow in all this, we must remember it’s not easy. For this team it started with a belief in each other, family, and community, Lentz said.

And, it was special.

Lentz said, "Every year someone has to win the state championship, why not us.”

This year it was Calallen in Class 4A.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Calallen's state softball title leaves legacy for Corpus Christi