FAYETTEVILLE -- De Queen De Champs.
The Lady Leopards can wear that distinction with pride after beating Valley View 4-1 Friday in the Class 5A state championship game at Bogle Park. The game was scoreless until the fifth inning when De Queen used its bunting game and a run-scoring triple by Lexy Taylor to take a 4-0 lead.
The surge was more than enough for Josie Vaught, who was selected the game's Most Valuable Player after holding Valley View to one run on three hits. The Lady Blazers (24-7) avoided the shutout in the seventh inning on a run-scoring double by Macy Montgomery.
De Queen (30-4) won its first state championship after reaching the state semifinals five times. This one was particularly special for De Queen coach Tracy Nealy, who's dealt with much tragedy in his personal life. He lost his father, an uncle, and his daughter, J.K. Nealy Hornsby, 28, who died of a seizure in March shortly after De Queen's first game this season.
"My daughter would come to practices and she was a big part of getting these kids motivated," Nealy said. "She was like a big sister to them. These girls, all 14 of them, have been my rock all year long. Not just mine, but my family's. They're special, special kids."
De Queen turned to small ball to break a scoreless tie in the fifth inning. The Lady Leopards bunted four times, including a push bunt by Tatyanna Tramble that rolled past two charging infielders on the left side. A throwing error brought in the first run and two more score on sacrifice bunts by Reisa Bakenhaus and Carli Sneed. Taylor then blasted a run-scoring triple to give De Queen a 4-0 lead.
"In close games, you've got to lay bunts down and make them make plays," Nealy said. "We were finally able to do that in the fifth inning."
De Queen loaded the bases in the second inning and had a runner at third base with no outs in the third inning but did not score. That frustration ended with four runs in the fifth, capped by Taylor's triple to right field.
"My teammates got us started and I was able to come back with a big hit," Taylor said. "This win is so important because it's history for our team and history for coach Nealy. We did it for J.K. the whole year."
Sports on 05/20/2017