How Midway softball found the perfect formula for run to state championship

DURHAM — In the fourth round of its playoff run all the way to the NCHSAA 2A state championship game, Midway softball took a 4-hour road trip to top-seeded Camden County.

The Bruins had put up 39 runs in their first three playoff wins, and their campus is closer to Richmond, Virginia, than Midway's home base of Spivey's Corner.

So, the Raiders hit the road.

And they brought tunes.

A thoughtful parent packed a speaker with disco lights to keep the team entertained. They sang through Rocky Mount, historic Edenton, over the Albemarle Sound. And when the Raiders arrived in Camden for the East Regional semifinal softball showdown, a dance party broke out.

With loose bats and happy feet, the Raiders smacked 14 hits to score 12 runs while sophomore ace Sarah Autry tossed a shutout to send Midway to its first regional final since 2010.

"My theory is that if you're loose and having fun, you're going to play better," Raiders coach Susan Clark said. And after the offensive outburst at Camden County, she started packing backup batteries and speakers.

"They know when to have fun and when to focus," Clark said of her squad, which is led by a group of six seniors — Clark's first class since adding softball to her coaching responsibilities at Midway in 2020.

"They've been with me the whole time," she said. "The heart and the drive and the fun this team has is beyond any season I've ever coached in anything."

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After winning at Camden, fourth-seeded Midway (22-7) took two of a three-game East Regional finals series against North Johnston to set up a state championship against three-time reigning champion West Stanly. The Bruins (31-1) would go on to win their sixth overall title in a sweep, taking a 4-2 victory in Game 1 and a 10-0, six-inning win in Game 2.

All six of their senior players earned college scholarships for softball, pitcher Lily Huneycutt is ranked No. 11 in the nation and she earned her 500th career strikeout against Midway in the finals. MaxPreps has West Stanly ranked the No. 1 team in North Carolina, across all classifications.

The Bruins are, truly, a powerhouse. And the Raiders are on their way.

Midway hasn't finished out of first place in the East Central 2A Conference since it was formed in 2018. Five straight league titles and a combined 55-5 conference record over that span have built on the program's long legacy of success.

Now, a state championship appearance as a 2A team (the Raiders' first state title game in 2010 was in Class 1A) has Midway eying new territory. Clark and her first class have already elevated a historically strong program.

The class core of starters Mallory Baggett, Jacie Byrd, Lainey Hughes and Krista "Pearl" McLean, along with Kasey Calcutt and Leah Culbreth have set a high bar for the future, but it's one that the Raiders already are preparing for.

Clark credits her senior leadership for teeing up some big goals and chasing them down, setting the tone for a talented group of underclassmen.

"That guidance on the field was astounding," Clark said.

Baggett could run down any ball in center field, and her .451 batting average was tops on the team. Baggett's two-run homer against North Johnston paved the way for the Raiders' regional title.

Byrd, a speedy leadoff who plays shortstop, boasts a team-best .534 on-base percentage to go with 21 stolen bases, and her all-heart play into the hole on defense to get a misdirected ball and fire it to first for a big out during Game 3 of the East Regional final kept the Raiders' postseason alive.

Hughes, who has signed with Barton, leads the team with 33 runs scored and 11 doubles — one coming on a two-hit day in the regional final with a game-winning RBI.

McLean, who will go on to play at Fayetteville Tech, owns seven of the team's 18 homers on the season — a program record. Her two-dinger Game 2 in the Eastern Regionals was a postseason highlight, and she held down the defense during pitching changes while rotating between first base and right field.

Clark calls Calcutt and Culbreth her "assistant coaches" who help with scouting and stats and pushing their teammates to succeed.

They do a mean "Wobble," too.

The pregame dance parties have also been a treat for fans, friends and family who've packed stands to support Midway's run. Despite getting just one day of rest between the regional finals and state championship, Clark said her Raiders just kept their momentum and they couldn't wait to get on the Duke University softball field in front of those familiar faces.

"They're driven to make the community proud," Clark said. "They're tough, hard-headed and they don't like to lose."

Line dances and sing-alongs might be new traditions for Midway softball. So, too, might state title series.

Sports editor Monica Holland can be reached at mholland@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Midway softball makes run to state 2A championship vs. West Stanly