By Thomas Sellers Jr.
May softball might bring a team on the brink of elimination.
The District 14-3A regular-season champs Brighton Lady Cardinals were experiencing that low May 9 after losing to the rival Munford Cougars in the district tournament semifinal. The team that had endured the health battles of Head Coach Robin Jacobs since the beginning of 2022, a mid-season slump and nagging injuries had to summon something deep from within.
“We had a speaker come last week and talk to them,” Jacobs recalled. “We talked about the ‘End Result.’ Keep producing until we get to the end and do the things you’re supposed to do until we get to the end. It’s a real simple task, if we hit the ball, we throw and we catch.
“And if our pitcher keeps pitching like she has, we’ll be hard to handle,” he continued. “That’s where we’re at now. The senior leadership has been outstanding and our juniors have seemed to mature. It’s been a fun year to be honest with you.”
Brighton’s 2022 season of fun extended by coming back to win the district tournament and Monday night the Lady Cardinals secured a spot in the Sectional game by beating the District 13-3A runner up Obion County Lady Rebels 10-2 on the Brighton Softball Field.
“We talked about their maturity earlier in the year,” Jacobs said. “The maturity is there. They just went out there and played. We were playing Covington in the elimination game. We went out there and played pretty well in that game.
“Then we came back and won the two games against Munford,” he added. “I think the maturity has been outstanding. The growth and development has evolved and helped keep things in perspective.”
Jacobs said he is proud of his coaching staff for keeping the girls focused as he takes care of his health issues. He said his daughter and interim Head Coach Emily Stewart has been the glue of the team for years but especially in 2022.
Stewart was in the third base coaching box when the Lady Rebels came calling. Brighton junior hurler Katelyn Jones took to the circle and established early she was ready to shut down Obion County. Inducing ground balls and striking out Lady Rebels, Jones kept Obion County scoreless while her team jumped ahead 8-0.
The Lady Cardinals scored 4 runs in the first inning. Junior standout Brie Howard got the offense rolling with a two-run triple. Her teammates Kelsey Camp and Timily David reached base with a single and slap base hit respectively.
Brighton went ahead 3-0 when Carley Cook smacked a base hit to bring home Howard. Kersten Hendrix made the tally 4-0 with an RBI base hit.
In the second inning Brighton added two more runs with a Howard double driving in a run and Cook singled to score Howard again.
After Camp drove in a pair of runs in the third inning, Brighton was ahead 8-0 and Jones was in firm control.
“After winning districts, we knew with Regionals, things were only going to get harder,” Jones said. “I had to push myself to do my best. I knew I had to bring the best I could.
“I just go out and pitch my game and I know my team has my back behind me,” she continued. “They’ll get me to where I need to and I’ll be OK.”
Jones wants to be the latest in a legendary line of Lady Cardinal hurlers to be named to an All-State team or reach the State Tournament. The 10-2 win over Obion County put Jones one win away from the team goal of reaching State.
“The Munford defeat brought us down but we bounced back because we knew what we had to do,” Jones acknowledged. “We had to come back and we just had to believe in ourselves. We just lost confidence in that game.”
Now Jones and the Lady Cardinals have confidence heading into Wednesday’s Region 7-3A title game at Dyer County. The Lady Choctaws are rolling with five straight wins outscoring opponents 33-2. The Lady Cardinals might have a mental edge after beating Dyer County 6-1 on April 30.
“We play Dyer County, I don’t know if you can call them a rival or not,” Jacobs concluded. “But they’re the team we have to get through to get that trophy. I hope they (Lady Cardinals) understand they have to go out and produce. It will be hard and a hostile environment. We’re ready to play in that.”
