It is that time of season and we have finally reached the State Tournament and congratulations to all the teams that have made it back to the state tournament. Follow along as I preview the State Tournament matchups and hear from the coaches as they give their thoughts. The State Tournament is at Devon Park formally known as the Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.
Dale vs Howe
1:30pm (Integris Field)
Last Appearance: Dale (12th consecutive since 2012) Howe (First since 2022)
Dale’s road to state
Dale’s road began with wins over Texhoma/Goodwell 12-0 and Tonkawa 8-1 and 12-2 in regionals and Pawhuska 16-0 twice in super regionals to advance to state.
We have played arguably the hardest schedule in 2A that i believe has prepared us. We have made it to state finals 9 out of last 11 years and we have 6 state championships that we are proud of as a program. We are very excited to compete this week for another state title against a very deep and talented class said Dale coach Andy Powell.
Howe’s road to state
Howe’s road began with wins over Sallisaw Central 10-0 and Wister 3-2, Lost to Wister 4-0 but won the if game 6-5. Won game one over Fairland 3-2, Fell in game two 5-4 but won the if game 7-2 in super regionals to advance to state.
When taking this job late this summer, I came in knowing we had some talented players that could make a run if all the pieces fell into place. I can’t say the road was easy. Getting the players to trust a new coach and new system is never easy, and there were definitely some learning curves on both sides. It came down to finding a balance. I wanted these girls challenged as a team and I think our schedule reflects that. I also wanted them to challenge each other and go to work every day in practice, and I’m really proud of the way they have stepped up and done that too. We had some bumps in the road, especially losing that last district game and the chance to host regionals. I think that just really got the girls fired up and ready to bring their best into this playoff run. Honestly, we haven’t been looking too far ahead. We’ve learned to take this season one game at a time and that’s how we are treating this final run at state. We didn’t walk into regionals looking towards state, and we didn’t walk into supers looking towards state either. We are treating each game as the most important game of the season. I love watching them getting better and more confident as their opponents get a little more difficult. I think they are just now figuring out how good they are and how good they can be. That’s what I’m excited to see. I probably have the same reaction that most coaches do. Happy for my girls and proud of the team, their grit, their refusal to let rankings tell them whether they belong there or not. I think we were probably regarded as somewhat of a longshot, but I knew they had a chance if they went and took care of business. I’m just so proud of the way they did it, they approached that series with a lot of integrity and a lot of faith said Howe coach Vernon Scarberry.
Preston vs Oktaha
10:30am (Integris Field)
Last Appearance: Oktaha and Preston (Second consecutive)
Preston’s road to state
Preston’s road began with wins over Nowata 10-0 and Salina 3-0 twice in regionals and Merritt 5-0 and 4-3 in super regionals to advance to state.
Beginning the season we had high expectations. We lost three starting seniors, but I knew we had a good group of freshmen and sophomores eager to work hard to fill those spots. Our schedule this year was made harder and that has helped us tremendously. The road to state for us has been hard. Every win had to be earned not given. Winning the Bixby and Mounds tournaments keep our spirits high. When regional playoffs finally got here our team was hungry. We were fortunate to have beat two quality teams to get to state. The girls were very excited winning that Super Regional to punch our ticket to the state playoffs. There was a time Preston Softball expected to be in state every year. We had some down years but these girls are bringing that expectation back. Last year was the first time in 22 years that a Preston fastpitch team made to the OSSAA state playoffs. I love this team along with last years team because they put an end to that dry spell. Not only are they happy to be here but they are ready to compete said Preston coach Jimmy Hurst.
Oktaha’s road to state
Oktaha’s road began with wins over Cameron/Arkoma 14-0 and Hartshorne 17-2 and 11-2 in regionals and Minco 4-0 and 12-0 in super regionals to advance to state.
This year has been a really special year. We only returned 1 starter off last years team. All these girls have been waiting for their turn. They have all been playing JV for 1, 2 and 3 years just waiting. We graduated a lot of talent last year but this team has really worked hard and dug in. Our motto this year has been to play with a chip on our shoulder and this team really has done just that. They are fun to watch and fun to coach said Oktaha coach Kia Holmes.
Latta vs Stroud
6:30pm (Integris Field)
Last Appearance: Latta (Second Consecutive) Stroud (First since 2020)
Latta’s road to state
Latta’s road began with wins over Pawnee 14-2 and Healdton 12-0 and 6-2 in regionals, Lost the first game to Calera 10-9 but won back to back games 6-5 and 7-2 in super regionals to advance to state.
We started off with a challenging schedule going to Preston and Haskell week 1 of the season. We came away with wins vs both teams who were in the state tournament last year. The next week Parnell was dealing with blisters in her pitching hand so I didn’t let her throw at the Heart of Oklahoma Tournament. We took some losses from good teams but kept it close most games. After that, we got on a roll beating some good teams. We finished 2nd at Tushka to Caddo. Playoffs rolled around and we took care of business in regionals, but super regionals was a battle. Calera showed up ready to play. Parnell showed up with a 103 degree temperature and definitely struggled but our defense didn’t help at all. We lost game 1 and had to battle back to win the next two. Making it to state again is just a testament to my girls and how hard they work year round to be ready for October. We put in extra time in the weight room in the offseason to help us prepare for the grind of a season. We are ready for Thursday and can’t wait to get on the field! said Latta coach Jeremy Bates.
Stroud’s road to state
Stroud’s road began with wins over Colbert 15-1 and Walters 7-0 and 5-0 in regionals and wins over Commerce 10-3 and 11-1 in super regionals to advance to state.
Like most teams we started the season with high expectations. We knew we had an opportunity to go far in the playoffs. Early in the season we dealt with many challenges. First, we are a young team. Our roster has 7 freshmen, 6 sophomores, 2 juniors, and 2 seniors. Second, we had a few players with injuries. With great leadership from our upper classmen, we overcame these obstacles as everyone did their job. This season has been successful due to a great effort from everyone. Stroud Fastpitch last made a state tournament appearance in 2020. We as a team are excited and grateful to have earned this opportunity to compete in the state tournament while representing our school and community said Stroud coach Charles Durrence.
Pocola vs Crescent
4:00pm (Integris Field)
Last Appearance: Pocola (Fifth consecutive since 2021) Crescent (First since 1987)
Pocola’s road to state
Pocola’s road began with wins over Savanna 12-0 and Warner 12-0 and 3-0 in regionals and Hobart 10-0 and 13-0 in super regionals to advance to state.
With finishing as state runner ups the last two years and returning eight starters and another that started several games are expectations and preparation has been extremely high. We’ve really hit the weight room hard all off season and continued it into the season and we’ve played a really tough schedule trying to get us back to the State Tournament. The bar has been set pretty high here so making it back for a 5th straight year and 8 out of the last 10 is something I’m extremely proud of. Just hope to continue to play well, our pitching and defense has been really solid all season our hitting has improved all season as well and I hope it continues to do so this week said Pocola coach Eddie Combs.
Crescent’s road to state
Crescent’s road began with wins over Watonga 15-1 and Hennessey 12-1 and 8-0 in regionals and Coalgate 8-3 and 6-0 in super regionals to advance to state.
Crescent softball journey for the 2024 season started with team bonding at our HS/MS annual cookout; before our season started. Our players made poster boards, writing down their individual and Team goals. When I went through all their poster boards, the Team Goal that showed up on every poster is “Make it to State”. Even though this has not been accomplished since 1987. When we reached the record of 18-0 and won the Northwest Shootout tournament I knew what we now had a team that could be destined to change history! Our next game we didn’t win, but it didn’t seem to phase our team in a negative way. We went on to win our District, then Regionals, and then we thought for sure we would host Super Regionals. Well we didn’t host Supers and once again this did not affect the Team in a negative way. It actually lit a fire under the Team and we made sure Crescent’s mindset would dominate while traveling to our Super Regionals. Finally ending Crescent’s 37 year drought of going to State. A lot of emotions goes into playing this game and the best feeling ever is knowing you accomplished your goals said Crescent coach Steve Hudson.
The OKPreps Rundown 
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