By Marty Pallman
It literally has been the perfect season for the Trenton Tigers softball team in 2019.
A year ago, the Tigers advanced to the 1A state championship game at Historic Dodgertown in Vero Beach. But Trenton came up a run short, losing 2-1 to Wewahitchka.
This season, Trenton made sure it took care of unfinished business. The Tigers won the 1A state title on Wednesday afternoon in Vero Beach, knocking off Sneads 7-3 for the first state softball championship in school history.
“It’s awesome,” said Trenton coach Todd Bryant. “We are a small community, a small town, but we have huge support and we had the whole town here today. It’s a big day for Trenton.”
In a rematch of last year’s state title game, Trenton took care of Wewahitchka 4-0 in Tuesday’s state semifinal game. On Wednesday, it was a six-run 5th that put the championship game out of reach for the Tigers against Sneads.
Trenton got on the board first in the second inning on an RBI single by Hallie Bryant, Coach Bryant’s daughter. The lead stayed at 1-0 until the Tigers broke it open in the 5th.
In that inning, Trenton sent 12 batters to the plate and scored six runs on six hits, with two Sneads errors thrown in. Shalyn Parrish had a big 2 RBI single, and Adrian Ingram, Keeli Zingaro, and Taniah Bowers added run-scoring hits as Trenton’s lead grew to 7-0.
Sneads did get three runs in the 6th on a bases-clearing double by Taylor Lamphere, but other than that Trenton pitcher Darian Ingram was spot on in the circle.
Darian Ingram, a sophomore, went the distance, allowing three hits and three runs while striking out 12. Coach Bryant was impressed and proud of his hurler.
“She (Darian) pitched so well today, better than the previous day (against Wewa),”Bryant said. “She has pitched 22 of our 27 games and has been our workhorse all year, and she was on again today.”
Trenton also finishes a perfect season at 27-0, including wins over two wins over a 7A playoff team in Gainesville and a 5A regional finalist in Santa Fe. The Tigers also won 8-3 at Oakleaf (Orange Park), which was ranked in the top five nationally at the time.
