Buford wins its 11th GHSA softball state championship

The state of Georgia crowned eight softball state champions this weekend, led by the dominance AAAAAAA winner Buford, which won the 11th state crown in school history.

Also winning state titles were Pope (AAAAAA), Northside-Columbus (AAAAA), West Laurens (AAAA), Wesleyan (AAA), Jeff Davis (AA), Emanuel County (A Div. 1), and Heard County (A Div. 2).

Here is a recap of the action:

Buford wins Class AAAAAAA State Championship

There was no softball team more dominant in the state of Georgia than the Buford Wolves this year. The Wolves lost only once this season and rolled to their 11th softball state championship in program history after dismantling East Coweta, 9-1, on Saturday.

Freshman sensation Caroline Stanton put an exclamation on her terrific season with a pair of 2-run homers in the game, one to start it and one to end it. Senior pitcher Olivia Duncan took care of the rest, pitching seven innings of 3-hit, 1-run ball while striking out three.

“It’s awesome,'' Buford head coach Trent Adams said. “I’m proud of these girls. I’m proud of our school, our community, and our city. I want to thank the Board of Education and our city for what they do for these girls, our student-athletes. It’s unbelievable how much they pour into them.”

The Wolves got on the board first with a 2-out, 2-run home run by Stanton after Adriana Martinez walked. Leading 2-0 after one inning, the Wolves took a 3-0 advantage when fellow freshman Summer Castorri scored on a passed ball.

They scored three more runs in the fourth inning, the first two on a hit-by-pitch and another passed ball, and the third on a Martinez RBI single. Madison PIckens made it 7-1 when she drove home Tavye Borders on a sacrifice fly.

Stanton then put the icing on the cake with her second 2-run homer of the game in the seventh, her 14th and final homer of the season.

The Wolves finished the season with a record of 32-1 with their lone loss coming in the Super Regional to Lambert. In the Elite 8 tournament in Macon to decide the state champion, the Wolves beat Parkview, East Coweta, North Gwinnett and then East Coweta again in the finals.

“We try to schedule hard and I feel like the schedule was really hard,” Adams said. “It prepared us for the Super Sectionals and then getting down here to Columbus. I’ve always said there’s no pressure like Columbus pressure, and I feel like our girls and our schedule helped on the front end for that.”