Another memorable season of CA Lady Cougars softball reached its end Saturday after an exciting run that took them all the way to the MAIS 5A State Tournament.
The Lady Cougars battled in two tightly contested games Saturday at the Magee Sportsplex but fell just short in both, falling to East Rankin Academy 3-2 in their first contest and to Bayou Academy 3-2 in the losers bracket to bring their tournament run to an end. Although head coach Kyle Wilks said his team would love to have advanced to the next round of action, he believes what they accomplished this fall was remarkable nonetheless and sets the stage for them to enjoy even more success in the near future.
"I was proud of the way our girls fought, not just here at the end but all season long to reach this point," Wilks said. "We have a really young team, and we still make rookie mistakes here and there, but these girls have grown a lot over the course of the season, and their confidence is growing as a result."
Only two Lady Cougars will be departing from the team in the spring. Seniors Abbey Pevey and Maggie Wilks will leave big shoes to fill as longtime leaders on CA's roster, but a lot of younger team members saw significant playing time this season and will be eager for their own chance to carry the Lady Cougars to success.
"Maggie and Abbey are both great young ladies and great young players. Both are committed to play at the next level, and I think they'll continue to have a lot of success," Wilks said. "A lot of these other girls, however, are going to be here with us for years to come. They're really talented as well, which makes it pretty easy to look ahead and believe we've got a bright future ahead of us as a softball program."
