First and Ben

   By Ben Anderson           Late rock singer Tom Petty’s famous hit “I Won’t Back Down” was the motto for the Hurricane Redskins, as it refused to back down in an elimination game, defeating the Jefferson Cougars 9-5 on Tuesday night at the WVSSAC Class AAAA State Softball Tournament.      The Redskins were coming off falling to Morgantown, 1-0 earlier in the day, while Jefferson aimed to bounce back from a 9-0, five-inning walloping from Cabell Midland.       Hurricane attack with aggression at the plate early on, knocking in three runs in the first inning. Josie Shamblin brought home Layla Hodges. Sophie Dunlap knocked an RBI single into shallow center field to score Kiley Jones. Shaylen Scott would also find her way to home plate on the same play.        The Cougars responded with three runs in the second and third innings, before Hurricane tacked on a run in the bottom of the third to mak...

 By Ben Anderson      In the fifth battle of the Patriots, George Washington reigned supreme over Parkersburg South 6-1 in the first round of the WVSSAC State Softball Class AAAA Tournament on Tuesday afternoon.      “We executed early,” George Washington head coach Bub Hobbs said. “We were able to score some runs early in the game. Defensively, energy. I’m pleased. To have a young, relatively younger group like we have, to have the poise that they did was pretty impressive.”      George Washington, a team that is not known for strong starts, fired on all cylinders at the plate, scoring four runs in the first three innings.      “You can pull any of the girls aside and they’ll tell you what my thing is, energy,” Hobbs said. “If you have good energy, that stuff spreads like wildfire. It always does. I told my girls, if we come out flat, that’s how we’re going to play. And we’ve never been able to start fast because our ener...

 By Ben Anderson      It turns out that the Cabell Midland Knights did not need a sword to go into battle to defend its state championship, but rather the lightning arm of Drea Watts.      Watts achieved the rarest feat for a pitcher in the circle, in the Knights 9-0, five-inning run-rule victory over the Jefferson Cougars in the WVSSAC Class AAAA State Tournament.       Watts was electric at the beginning, after retiring the first batter of the game via a line-drive to third base, struck out the next eight with the first seven via going down swinging. Watts only retired four batters not via strikeout.      “I wouldn’t say that there was that much pressure.” Watts said. “Going into it, I didn’t really know what we were getting into, but after that first inning, I feel like we set the tone, and I feel like we were pretty good.”       “She’s a workhorse,” Knights assistant coach Jason Harris said. “I...

 By Ben Anderson      The 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament is just three days away and the Marshall Thundering Herd will be competing in the Durham Regional.      The other three teams in the regional will be the Arizona Wildcats, the Herd’s first day opponent, the Howard Bison, and host The Duke Blue Devils.      Let’s take a deep dive into the Durham regional, starting with the Arizona Wildcats of the Big 12 conference.      The Wildcats' postseason appearance marks Arizona's 38th selection all-time and is the 11th time in program history that Arizona will be on the road for a regional. Arizona swept the last two road regionals that the Wildcats have played in – the 2024 Fayetteville Regional and the 2022 Columbia Regional.        The Wildcats are heading into the big dance with a 35-16 (16-8 Big 12) record and ranked No. 21 in the ESPN/USA Softball Top 25 Rankings. Arizona has one of the most domin...

 By Ben Anderson      The historic season continues for Marshall Softball, as it will be going dancing for just the third time in program history and the first since 2017 by earning an at-large bid to the 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament, playing in the Durham Regional.      Marshall is paired with another at-large team, the Arizona Wildcats of the Big 12 Conference. Duke, the No. 12 seed from the Atlantic Coastal Conference, and the hosting team of the regional will take on the Howard Bison, who are coming off its second consecutive MEAC Tournament championship.      This comes off the heels of a long struggle for the Thundering Herd over the last two weeks of the regular season and the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. Marshall dropped two of three games on the road against Louisiana and at home against Duke, before falling in the SBC Tournament quarterfinals 6-0 against No. 10 Coastal Carolina. The Herd’s other two appearances came in 2013...

 By Ben Anderson      Today, Marshall Softball welcomes the James Madison Dukes to Dot Hicks Field for the regular season series finale, and a chance to claim its first Sun Belt Conference regular season crown.       The Thundering Herd enters at 36-14 (16-5) and tied for first place with the ULM Warhawks, who plays Southern Miss this weekend. Both teams have a chance to share the regular season title if it matches weekend results.       The Dukes are 25-22 (11-10) and winners of nine of its last 11, after sweeping the Georgia State Panthers last weekend. The Dukes are currently ranked fifth in the SBC.       This weekend is a weekend of celebration for the Thundering Herd. On Friday, the program will announce the 2026 Emileigh Cooper “Warrior” Award. Saturday’s pregame festivities will recognize the seniors of Abby Darnley, Paige Maynard, and Paige Simpson. The team will also recognize Haleigh Adkins, Bella...