Sophia Lopez Delivers Dream Moment as Hilliard Bradley Captures Ohio First State Softball Title

AKRON, Ohio – Hilliard Bradley junior Sophia Lopez got to live out every little kid’s dream on Thursday at Firestone Stadium in the OHSAA Division I state championship game.

A Dream Scenario

The center fielder came to the plate in the top of the seventh inning of a tie game with two runners aboard and delivered with a 2-run double to the gap in right center to give the Jaguars a lead, a 7-5 victory over Lancaster and a state title.

“I've been waiting for this moment, it’s the dream moment,” Lopez said. “Tie game, state championship, this is what you literally play for, and I was so excited that I came through for my team. I had no doubt in my mind that I would, but I'm just really happy that I got the result that I did.”

A 2-run double by @SophiaLopez2027 gives Hilliard Bradley (@HBJagsoftball) a 7-5 lead T7 in the Division I state championship game pic.twitter.com/mbgLITaAR7
— Ryan (@Isley23) June 4, 2026

Calm in the Biggest Moment

If it looked like Lopez was calm and collected during one of the biggest at-bat of her career, it is because she was.

“I was really excited for it, (but) I honestly wasn't really that nervous,” Lopez said. “I prayed before my at-bat, so I had my trust in God, but I was really excited. I just knew that we had prepared really well as a team for this, and I knew that I could come through for my team.”

Come through she did. She took a 1-0 pitch and smoked a line drive just to the right of second base and it hit the turf and went all the way to the fence, scoring Aubrey Allen and Mickey Moody.

It just happened to be the exact pitch Lopez wanted.

“I think it was just another inside pitch,” she said. “I was just planning to keep my hands inside the ball.”

First-Inning Fireworks

It was the second time on the day that Lopez had gotten her hands inside on a pitch, as she did so in her first at-bat as well. In that one, she took a pitch and hit a screamer over the left field fence for a solo home run in the first inning.

“The one that she pitched me (for the home run) was a low and inside one, and I was pretty excited for it,” Lopez said.

. @SophiaLopez2027 of Hilliard Bradley (@HBJagsoftball) with a solo HR in the first to give the Jaguars a 1-0 lead T1 in the Division I State championship game pic.twitter.com/T2vHqS1YYx
— Ryan (@Isley23) June 4, 2026

It took her a few moments to show any emotion on the homer, however, because she wasn’t sure if she had gotten enough of it to get out of the park.

“At first, I didn't know it was over,” Lopez said. “But I saw our first base coach's hands go up, and I was like, okay, wait, this is like crazy. It went farther than I thought. And then, as soon as we went over, I was so excited.”

Lancaster's Approach

But after the home run, Lancaster kept going inside on Lopez, forcing two ground balls in the infield – one a fielder’s choice and the other a groundout to second. It was those two at-bats which made Hilliard Bradley head coach Kevin Moody not completely surprised that the Gales pitched to Lopez instead of just walking her intentionally and loading the bases.

“I think they got her jammed inside a couple of times, and it was working for them pretty well, and I think I think that's what they were counting on, is that she couldn't get her hands through the zone quick enough,” Moody said. “I mean, that's a tough call. I don't want to second guess their coach, she's fantastic, but I think they had a game plan, and they were sticking to it, and it was working for them really well for three innings, so for Sophia to come through, it was huge for her to get her hands through the zone that quick.”

It was the first at-bat of the game that set up the seventh inning heroics, because after that, the Lancaster defense made an adjustment on how they played her. With her pulling the ball for a home run, the center fielder was now shaded towards left field, which gave Lopez a gaping hole in right center, one she saw and took advantage of.

Finding the Gap

“I did (see the gap), because I saw after my home run I was expecting it a little bit,” Lopez said. “I saw the shift, and was like, well, there it is.”

A Championship Moment

And what it was happened to be the biggest non-home-run hit of Lopez’s career, one that helped give Hilliard Bradley its first softball state title in school history.

It was the moment dreams are made of.

Add us as a preferred source on Google