Aledo, Brock softball preview state championship games

Parker County will be well represented Friday night at McCombs Field for the softball state championships, as Aledo and Brock will play back-to-back in hopes of returning to title glory.

In 5A Div. I, the Ladycats continue to ride high after dethroning two-time state champion Melissa in the state semifinals last week. Avenging the loss to the Lady Cardinals, Aledo threw a party on Dinger Drive with home runs from Delaney Rosser, Brooklyn Taloa and the team’s leading home-run hitter in the postseason, Breleigh Mayer.

With four homers in the playoffs, Mayer credited the preparation in practice with her hitting coach and Aledo Head Coach Heather Myers.

“We work on pitches we anticipate seeing that week, knowing that the opposing team is going to be as prepared for us as we are for them,” said Mayer.

Describing the influence of Dinger Drive on the team, Mayer explained that hitting home runs is infectious and turns up Aledo’s energy and confidence throughout the lineup.

“Our entire lineup is hitters that can and will produce on any given day,” furthered Mayer. “Once we get going, we’re definitely hard to stop.”

Taloa’s solo shot in the bottom of the sixth inning was the decider in Aledo’s win over the top-ranked team in the country. Much like many players on the roster who suffered the devastating loss in 2025, the sophomore first baseman confessed the feeling was hard to explain.

“We knew it wasn’t over until the last out and when Tempe [Perry] threw the last strike, the feeling was unreal,” Taloa said. “We definitely celebrated our win and carry it with us everywhere, but we also have to understand that our job isn’t over yet and we have to move on to mentally and physically prepare for the game ahead of us to win a state championship.”

Carrying that momentum into Friday, the Ladycats take on a Barbers Hill team that comes in with a 39-5 overall record. The Lady Eagles have held their opponents to an average of one run per game in 11 playoff games.

As Mayer views Barbers Hill equally as challenging as Mellisa, the pair of Ladycats consider Aledo’s preparation as its biggest strong suit ahead of Friday.

“We study all aspects of their team and how to take away their strength and emphasize their weaknesses,” said Taloa. “I think we do a great job offensively on studying the pitcher and preparing ourselves for what she is coming at us with.”

While players like Taloa represent the next generation of Aledo softball to carry the program, Mayer will play her final game in a Ladycat uniform and can’t imagine a better way to cap off her time with the program than with a state title win.

“I remember being a little kid and going to the state game we won in 2014. Just last week, I read a letter I wrote to myself in fifth grade on how I hoped I had won a state championship for the Ladycats,” Mayer said. “This school, program and community mean so much to me, so I hope we can achieve this not only for ourselves, but for all of Aledo and the future Ladycats who look up to us.”

For the Brock Lady Eagles, the driving force of their path to the 4A Div. II title game is the youth. Only a few seniors among a roster filled with freshmen and sophomores, the program’s first state championship appearance in 16 years came through players like Kayden Blue, Sloan Booth and Ali Coleman.

“With such a young team, you have to step up as a leader and lead by example,” said Blue, the sophomore shortstop.

According to Booth, the freshman second baseman, the Lady Eagles were focused on being individually good and quickly realized they had to work as a team to be better.

Through much team bonding, one of Brock’s biggest strengths is its ability to pick each other up and work back into games as a family.

A state semifinal series against Van Alstyne was a great way for the young players to gain confidence, according to sophomore pitcher Ali Coleman. Calling the Lady Panthers one of the best opponents Brock has faced in the playoffs, alongside Levelland for their hitting ability, Coleman broke her strikeout streak with a 2-run double late in game two before closing it out on the mound for a series sweep.

Through every playoff win, Coleman stated that the team only got better after nerves ahead of the postseason were apparent.

“As we kept going and kept growing as a family, it calmed us down because we could rely on each other,” said Coleman. “I feel pretty dang confident cause I know I got behind me.”

Mentally, Coleman and the Lady Eagles are doing really well. Despite being in only her second year with the program, Coleman’s playoff resume is extensive and has left her a better pitcher.

She credited Brock’s defensive play and hitting ability as well, which Blue confidently stated is peaking at the right time.

“We all want it so bad for each other and set the standard for Brock softball. We want to be The team to do it all,” said Blue.

Expectations coming into 2026 have been exceeded, according to Booth. Plus, the team’s goal of setting the standard and building a program has been accomplished even before the first pitch Friday night.

“We really deserve this,” said Booth on a title game appearance. “We’ve worked so hard for this and all of us have put in the work.”

Looking toward the Liberty matchup, Blue admitted there are some nerves, but the team is encouraging each other to stay calm.

As for a point of emphasis in early week practices, it’s Brock’s work in the cages to prepare for pitcher Bayleigh Taylor’s riseball.

A Florida State commit, Liberty’s Taylor struck out 17 in the team’s one-game playoff against Wimberley in the previous round. The difficulty of her riseball is her ability to throw it at three different levels of the zone.

Friday’s contest will feature a great amount of contact hits rather than power, if either side can find success against two of the best pitchers in 4A.

Booth and Blue confirmed that Brock and Liberty share similarities in speed and hitting ability.

For Coleman, there’s a greater difficulty to hitters who focus on finding the gaps rather than hitting bombs, but will use her experience from the Georgetown tournament earlier this season to perform well.

On what a state title would do for Brock, Coleman said it proves the underdog can always win too, because of the program’s 16-year drought.

“Holding a state trophy with this group of girls would be so much fun because of how long ago it was and how many memories we made to get here,” she said.

However, against the 38-6 Lady Panthers, Coleman doesn’t feel like the underdog at all.