Do 6A softball teams need a Power 5 commit to win a state title? History says yes

The Dallas area hasn’t had a softball state champion in the UIL’s highest classification since 2017.

In fact, only one Dallas-area team has claimed a 6A state title — Keller, which won back-to-back years in 2016 and 2017.

While the 6A classification is still relatively new to UIL softball, only beginning play in 2015, many Dallas-area coaches are still searching for what it takes to bring home the coveted crown.

Mansfield Lake Ridge was close in 2022 — three outs away, to be exact. With five area teams still remaining across Class 6A Regions I and II, one may get the opportunity to end the area’s drought and find the piece that’s been missing for Dallas-area teams as of late.

When looking at the seven Class 6A champions the state has had, one common thread persists. Almost every champion has had a marquee player set to join in a Power 5 program. From Keller sisters and Indiana commits Camryn and Caraline Woodall to Northside O’Connor’s Leighann Goode (Texas), coveted recruits have hoisted the UIL’s top prize year after year.

But this season, among the five Dallas-area teams remaining, only Denton Guyer and Flower Mound have this common denominator.

Flower Mound senior Logan Halleman signed with Texas Tech this fall while Guyer junior Kaylynn Jones is committed to Oregon.

Both Halleman and Jones rank among the area’s top performers this season. Halleman ended the regular season ranked eighth in batting average at .627. Jones wasn’t far behind at .574.

Halleman’s coach Mark Larriba said her impact on her team’s success is unquantifiable.

“She’s a game changer,” he said. “She’s such a threat with the bat. She can do everything. She’s a legit triple-threat. She can slap. She can bunt. She can hit home runs. I think she’s one of the toughests outs there are, and her batting average indicates that. And she’s doing that against top teams.”

Larriba believes the biggest advantage some teams have is dominant pitching. Having a player like Halleman neutralizes that threat.

For teams that choose not to pitch to her, she led the area in stolen bases with 44 in the regular season.

“If you walk her, you might as well count it as a triple,” Larriba said.

Opponents haven’t found a simple solution for Jones either. The California move-in has led her team to a 33-0 start, 15 double-digit run performances and back-to-back 8-0 shutouts in the postseason.

Halleman and Jones could join the long list of Texas players to win 6A titles before jetting off to some of the nation’s top programs. Teams like the 2019 Katy state title team and the 2017 Keller program had as many as five Power 5 commits and signees. The only 6A champion that didn’t have one was Deer Park’s team in 2021, though it did have Madison Applebe and Kayla Zaid, who play at UCF and Houston, respectively — two programs set to join the Big 12 later this year.

But for the other three Dallas-area teams remaining this postseason — Keller, Southlake Carroll and Wylie — that big-name player is missing from their rosters.

“In all my years coaching softball, I don’t think I’ve really had one of those,” Southlake Carroll coach Tim Stuewe said.

Stuewe compared softball to baseball in arguing that teams don’t need that star power to win state. Some baseball teams have multiple Power-5 signees, like No. 1 Rockwall, for example, which has Pierson Riebock (Oklahoma), Brayden Randle (Ole Miss) and Micah Kendrick (TCU) all in its starting lineup.

But the depth on the area’s baseball teams runs deeper, especially at the pitching position. Softball teams can get by with one ace and win a state title while baseball programs could need two or three to reach the finals.

Carroll has just one college signee in Cameron Timmons, who signed with Harding this fall. But even without the flashy offers and marquee players, Stuewe isn’t fazed by his team’s chances to reach and succeed in Austin.

“Does it help? I’m sure it does. But you can’t win with one player,” he said. “If you’re not solid across the board, I think it’s hard to be successful. If you have one weak link and you try to hide them out there defensively, sooner or later the ball is going to get hit to them, and if they can’t make the play, it’s going to get to you.”

Many of the Dallas area’s top recruits have been picked off week after week. Argyle’s Maya Bland (Oklahoma), Flower Mound Marcus’ Tori Edwards (LSU). Lake Ridge’s Tia Warsop (Oklahoma State), Plano West’s Adayah Wallace (Texas) and Richardson Berkner’s Ella Hill (Texas Tech) all saw their seasons come to an end before this weekend’s regional semifinals.

Carroll, Wylie and Keller will seek to end runs for the area’s remaining stars this weekend en route to possibly bringing home the area’s first 6A title in six years with the hopes of completing their underdog narratives.

Power 5 commits and signees on 6A state championship teams

On Twitter: @Lassimak

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