Mental Toughness Fueling South Warren's Unbeaten Run to Kentucky Softball state Semifinals

LEXINGTON, Kentucky — South Warren High School went to extra innings with potential spoiler Madison Central in the quarterfinals Saturday. The Lady Indians provided a stiff challenge, but not enough to pull off the victory.

Surviving a Quarterfinal Scare

Down 3-2, in the bottom of the eighth, South Warren’s Parker Willoughby reached second on a hit and error. Then, on a 2-2 pitch from MC’s Kate Drury, Spartan Layla Ogden drilled a shot over the left field fence. South Warren advanced to next week's state semifinals.

South Warren shut out Oldham County Thursday, 12-0, to advance to the matchup with Madison Central.

Top-tier teams show out when the ledge becomes paper-thin, and that’s how they become the No. 2 team in the nation.

But even with talent and tenacity, it ain’t easy.

It can be a serious grind to continue winning, and with the added stressor of a loss being the first one, the pressure can be emotionally draining and mentally disruptive.

South Warren coach Kelly Reynolds said the Lady Spartans have implemented safeguards to help mitigate those inhibiting factors.

“We have worked so hard on making sure the mental game is where it needs to be,” Reynolds said. “We felt like that's really where we've fallen short in the past few years. So really focusing in on the mental side and making sure we're staying in it the whole game.”

Learning From Past Postseason Losses

The Lady Spartans fell to Henderson County in the 2024 state semifinals and were knocked out in the first round of last year's state tournament. In 2023, they lost to Greenwood in the Fourth Region Championship game, 2-1. They had beaten Greenwood twice that year.

A New Mental Approach

Reynolds explained that the girls read the book “You Win in the Locker Room First” to help them overcome the postseason challenges that have shadowed them the past three seasons. The book offers advice on how to construct a successful program beyond the wins and losses.

“A lot of the book talked about just leave past in the past and roll on in and learn from it and use it to your advantage,” Reynolds said. “You know, you've got to take each game one game at a time. And when your season starts, you're not looking at a state tournament. You're looking at one game at a time. Get through that first week, go to the second week, and we have done a very good job this year. Each week, we have a set of goals, and they're all on our locker room board.”

Kuzma Provides a Spark

And lastly, South Warren has a rising star in the making: the diminutive, yet deceptive, Kalie Kuzma. She has brought a spark and additional power to the lineup in the second half of the season. In the last three contests — the Fourth Region title game, and the two state playoff matchups — the eighth-grader has gone 5-for-9 with a home run, double, three singles, three RBIs and four runs scored.

State Semifinals Await

Highlands (34-6) vs. South Warren (42-0) at 3:30 p.m. at John Cropp Stadium on the campus of the University of Kentucky.

Bullitt East (30-4) vs. George Rogers Clark (37-5) at 6:30 p.m. at John Cropp Stadium on the campus of the University of Kentucky.

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