Class 1A Arkansas softball final: Taylor flexes muscle over rival Bradley to win sixth consecutive 1A state title

By Kyle Sutherland | Photos by Jimmy Jones 

CONWAY - It was a bumpier road than Taylor is accustomed to, but the journey ultimately led them to the same destination. 

In four contests this season, 1A-8 rivals Bradley and Taylor split the series 2-2 with nearly every major statistic dead even between runs, hits, and errors. 

However, Taylor's experience in the state finals was evident as the Lady Tigers cruised to a 12-2 win in six innings on Thursday night at Farris Field on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas. 

With the victory, Taylor (24-4-1) joined 2006-11 Foreman as the only program in state history regardless of classification to win six state championships in a row. It was the Lady Tigers' ninth all-time title.

Maggie McHenry, daughter of head coach Courtney McHenry, is the lone senior on the Lady Tigers' squad and scored the walk-off run to seal the 10-run rule on a sacrifice fly to end the game and finish her prep career with a bang. 

"We expected to come out here and win, but we thought it would be close," Maggie McHenry said. "To get the walk-off and being able to run rule was crazy."

Early on, it did indeed appear that Part V of the 2023 series would be another close matchup when Bradley senior Jackie Kelner hit a two-out solo home run off of Ayla Buford. 

From there, it was all Taylor starting with a three-run response in the bottom of the first. The Lady Tigers scored multiple runs in all but two innings, including six over the final two frames. 

Courtney McHenry, who won her second trophy in as many seasons as Taylor's head coach, talked about how her team was not locked in when Bradley (26-8) defeated them 7-4 on April 11 for the second time in conference play. 

Following that game, and especially once regionals began, McHenry noticed a completely different mindset within the dugout. Though the Lady Tigers dropped back-to-back games to Junction City and Woodlawn a couple of weeks later, McHenry's intuition was correct as Taylor went on to win their final nine games, including the 2023 state title.

"There were some who said we were having a tough season, but we were 23-4," McHenry said. "Two of those were to Bradley and we know they are a great team. I think any other losses would not have gotten to us as much as that one did and we had to fight."

Buford was the Most Valuable Player in the 2022 state finals as a freshman and earned the honor again after striking out six batters, as well as a big day at the plate finishing 2-for-4 with a triple and two runs scored. 

McHenry, along with junior catcher Madison Lindsey, each went 3-for-4 at the plate, while Reese Fowler also recorded multiple hits finishing with two.

Kelner and Ainslee Moore both recorded multiple hits for Bradley, while Moore also struck out eight batters in the circle. 

Before coming across campus to play their game Thursday evening, the Lady Tigers got to watch Taylor's baseball team win its second consecutive state title 9-3 over Mount Ida. It was the fourth time in school history that both the baseball and softball teams finished the season with the ultimate prize.

McHenry credits the dedication not just during the spring, but every day of the year, for the immense success of the program over the past two decades.

"They play so much and practice a lot, but we are just blessed with good girls who work hard and are athletic," McHenry said. "This season we had to work so much more on the mental part of it. In these close games our defense has really stepped up and made some big plays to keep those games low-scoring.

"Just bringing it all together was awesome."