By Robert Wilson
Copiah Academy was one win sort of winning the MAIS Class 4A, Division I state softball championship, but the Lady Colonels had a remarkable turnaround season.
Copiah finished with a a 23-15-1 record and won 14 more games than last season.
Copiah lost to Simpson Academy 16-6 in the third and deciding game of the state championship series earlier this week, but it didn’t diminish the outstanding season by longtime Copiah coach Terry Bauer and his team.
Bauer – who played baseball at Stringer High, Jones County Junior College and the University of West Alabama – was stopped just short of winning his sixth state championship in his career. He has won 703 games – the most in the MAIS – in 28 seasons at Copiah.
“We haven’t had a bad defensive night like that all year, but I was very proud of our kids that they never gave up and the energy was up til the last out was made,” Bauer said. “When you play someone eight times in a season (Copiah had a 3-5 record against Simpson), it basically comes down to who makes the routine plays and who gets the big hits. We had a great season coming off a nine win season a year ago. We knew we would be a lot better, but I don’t think many thought we would get this far. I told my group we are the last two standing in the biggest classification in the MAIS, that speaks highly of what you have accomplished. Every team has standout players, but I feel like our whole team played well this season and that’s why we got a chance to play for a championship.”
Copiah had only three seniors – second baseman Emma Keyes, first baseman Anna Holifield and outfielder Lyla Smith – and had three underclassmen – freshman pitcher-shortstop-outfielder Rainee Falvey, sophomore shortstop and leadoff hitter Kinley McKee and sophomore catcher-infielder Hayden Hayes – who played in the MAIS Futures game this week.
Rainey – who Bauer projects as a future Division I college player and will be attending a camp at University of Texas (one of the best programs in the country) in January – led Copiah with a 19-8 pitching record with one save and 175 strikeouts in 162 2/3 innings with a 2.79 earned run average and had a .484 batting average with 11 doubles, 1 triple, 19 home runs, 43 runs scored, and 54 runs batted in.
McKee had a .477 batting average with 12 doubles, 3 triples, 4 home runs, 55 runs scored, 19 RBIs and 34 walks. Hayes had a .318 batting average with 14 doubles, 1 triple, 7 home runs, 43 RBIs and 21 runs scored.
Rainey, McKee and Hayes will be attending a Mississippi State camp later this year.
“The three seniors were big leaders for this team this year and will be truly missed,” Bauer said. “Rainee, Kinley and Hayden are three of the hardest working players I’ve ever coached. They always want extra cuts after practice and are great leaders.”
Some other girls who contributed to the team this year were junior Kaylee Vaughn, sophomore Kayleigh Smith and freshman Marleigh Teasley, daughter of Copiah football coach Lance Teasley.
“Layla was out with a broken finger until the last month of the season and was a huge part of our success down the stretch,” Bauer said. “Kaylee didn’t play last year and has been a big part of our team with four home runs. Kayleigh has good speed and was our best outfielder. I’m looking for big things from all three next season.”
“This season was like no other,” McKee said. “As we look back on last season, it wasn’t something we were going to stick to this season. Coming into this season, Coach Bauer had us write down some goals that we wanted to complete. We as a team wanted to reach 20 wins. As we worked hard, we finally reached the goal with 23 wins. The team and I could not be more proud of one another. We made it through the whole season because we always had each other’s back. As the season closes, we can use the flaws to grow for the upcoming season. We as a team want to thank everyone for the support shown this year. I want to thank Coach Bauer for always pushing us to be our best.”
