Henderson County girls’ softball coach Shannon Troutman says if his team focuses on themselves and their game this weekend at the state Final Four, they’ll be fine.
“It’s more about us,” Troutman said. “If each kid goes out and plays the way they can, we’ll be fine.”
The Lady Cols have a tall order as they take on the number one-ranked South Warren High School, a team that has held the top spot in the state rankings all season long.
The game is scheduled for 6: 30 p.m. EST Friday at the University of Kentucky’s John Cropp Stadium.
Troutman calls South Warren a “very talented team” and a “very well-rounded team.”
South Warren beat third-ranked Lexington Catholic 1-0 in the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, Henderson County in the quarterfinals beat McCracken County 8-6 and in the opening round Anderson County 5-4 on a walk-off home run from Taylor Troutman, a Mississippi State signee and the coach’s daughter.
“It was great (seeing Taylor’s walk-off home run),” he said. “She works hard. I was glad to see it pay off.”
The coach said some of his younger players’ nerves were tested by playing at the university stadium in front of a big crowd. He said getting the first weekend behind them will allow them to relax, focusing on those things that they can control and blocking out the rest.
Shannon Troutman credits the three seniors this season with providing key leadership. Seniors are Taylor Troutman, Alyse Rollings and Hallie McCracken.
“My seniors have been big for me this year,” the coach said.
A couple of players are a little bit beat up, including catcher, McCracken, and pitcher Anna Kemp, who has a 22-1 record. Right now, the coach expects them to play, but they’ll need to work through some soreness and strains this week to be at full-strength by Friday.
Troutman said the Lady Cols set a goal early this year to return to the state championships, and it has stayed with them all year.
“It was definitely on their minds,” he said, adding it wasn’t an easy goal after losing three division one players off last year’s team that fell just short of state champions, losing to Louisville Ballard 12-4 in the final game.
On a personal note, Troutman said watching the final high school games of his daughter, who was ranked by CBS Sports’ MaxPreps.com as the 2024 preseason best softball player in the state, won’t be an easy task.
“She’s played for me for 12 years now,” he said. “It’s going to be a little bit rough.”
But it’s also going to be exciting to see what all she can do this weekend and throughout her college career, he said.
If the Lady Colonels win Friday’s matchup, they’ll play the state championship at 7 p.m. Saturday.
