Whitley County Beats Shelby County, Captures First State Baseball Championship
Tears, screams, joy, and elation filled Kentucky Proud Park as the final out was recorded. A simple dribbler to the left side of the infield, with all collective breaths held, decided a game. Whitley County was a program on the brink of mediocrity. The Colonels went without a regional championship before 2021, 20 straight years of losses. They were seen as a stepping stone for the Laurels and Knox County.
However, the crowd erupted when Whitley County’s shortstop Mathew Wright threw the ball to first for the last play of the season
At that moment, it was a crime not to yell for the Colonels as they climbed the unclimbable mountain. The history of Southern Kentucky baseball all faded away. Whitey County not only “won a baseball game” but also gave life to all 1,500+ fans that packed the right side of the field.
When the ball touched the mitt of first baseman Mason Croley, every fan wearing red broke the sound barrier at Kentucky Proud Park. In the history of Kentucky State Baseball tournaments, the south of Kentucky has not faired well. Baseball has been a sport dominated by the Louisville, Lexington, NKY, and Owensboro schools. Manager Jeremy Shope spoke on this after the game, “When I got here six years ago, I think they hadn’t been to the region in 11, 12 years.”
Not Saturday night; on Saturday night, nobody could beat Whitley County.
Shope changed the way Whitley County was viewed in the baseball community. Throughout the year, critics pointed to their lack of competition to explain the 38-4 record they held. The difference would show when the Colonels ran into the boys from the big cities. But, it proved the opposite throughout the tournament. Whitley County showed up and squeezed out wins over all competition.
The First One Means More
Whitley County knocked off the red-hot Shelby County Rockets 2-1 to earn their first state championship.
Shope spoke on their history with a tear in his eye, saying, “We had incredible kids that bought in from day one. We got this thing rolling. To all of the alumni who put their hard work, blood, sweat, and tears into this program, we won this for you.”
When he reached the mountaintop, Shope did not bask in his own glory. Instead, he pointed towards the crowd and shared their same joy; he did it for the people of Whitley County.
Towards the end of his quick one-minute interview after the final out, what he said to the media spoke volumes. “I appreciate you all, but I want to be with my guys right now.”
Again, with cameras and phones in his face, Shope pointed towards the people that helped him reach the mountaintop. As the trophy was brought out to Southern Kentuckians for the first time, players embraced their coach first. Speaking volumes to the character built among the Whitley County players. When Grant Zehr, Mason Croley, and Matthew Wright received their all-tournament team awards, they were more interested in the group award, the trophy.
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The Colonels’ first run came in the opening inning after Bryce Anderson tripled to start the game and then later scored on a groundout. Whitley County’s second run was the turning point of the game.
Holding a one-run lead throughout the night as Grant Zehr pitched a one-hitter, Whitley struggled to get runs to support. With men on first and third in the top of the sixth, the Colonels were knocking. However, a double steal confused Shelby County as Sam Harp took home to score their second.
“We had that play in. It’s unbelievable that it happened at the right moment,” Shope said. “You run those things all year long, the guys don’t see it, but when we did run it, we executed it.”
This run became even more important as Shelby County scored their lone run in the bottom of the sixth. Foster Whisman drove in a run for the Rockets on a single. However, Zehr completed his complete game with a ground out to end the night and secure a championship.
Rockets soar to an incredible season, fall just short
The same can be said for the other side. Even in the loss, Shelby County exemplified what makes Kentucky high school sports beautiful. The Rockets had a chance to do something they hadn’t done in many years. With the loss, Coach Steve Kingsolver held his head high and answered questions from the media.
“We always plan to be back here (state championship),” He told KSR after the game. “Hopefully, we will learn how we play and go back and perfect it some more. Then we come back here and take our shot; you never really know because it’s a single-elimination tournament. That’s what makes what (Whitley County) did a big deal; it’s not easy.”
Both teams played incredible seasons, and the game showed that. Whitley County proved that sometimes the team from the small division can play. Maybe next year the state will respect the teams that are not from the big cities.
Or just maybe, Whitley County will do it again.
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