No. 1 Melissa wins thriller, beats No. 3 Barbers Hill to win Texas 5A DI state championship; live scoring, recap

Sophomore pitcher Eloisa Maes goes the distance, claims UIL 5A Division I state finals MVP honors as No. 1 Melissa escapes bases-loaded jam in bottom of the seventh to win state title

Melissa sophomore Eloisa Maes improved to 32-1 and earned UIL finals MVP honors after going the distance in the circle, striking out 7 batters and allowing only 2 runs on 2 hits in 7 innings as Melissa won the Class 5A Division I state championship, 4-2 over Mt. Belvieu Barbers Hill on Friday, May 30, at McCombs Field in Austin. / Michael Horbovetz

This game could be one for the ages.

The most highly-anticipated matchup in the state of Texas on Friday night is also the most highly-anticipated high school softball game in the country, as two of the very best teams in the country - No. 1 Melissa and No. 3 Mt. Belvieu Barbers Hill - battle for the UIL Texas Class 5A Division I state championship.

Games are running a bit behind so far on Friday at McCombs Field In Austin, so there could be a delay, but first pitch is slated for 7 p.m. Be sure to bookmark this page and check back often as we will be posting live scoring, updates and highlights from the big game in the space below, which will expand as we post so be sure to refresh often.

Melissa (37-1) rides into the title game behind a record-breaking offense that leads the nation in home runs with 124 - already a national high school single-season record. The Lady Cardinals, led by standout hitters like Finlee Williams, Hutton "Lulu" Adrian, Kennedy Bradley and Caigan Crabtree, average double-digit runs per game and are coming off a 15-4 semifinal win over Aledo. Sophomore ace Eloisa Maes is 30-0 with a 1.27 ERA and 222 strikeouts, while senior Makenna Ramsey has notched 12 saves.

Barbers Hill (35-3) hasn’t dropped a playoff game and has allowed just eight runs total through eight postseason contests. The Lady Eagles’ elite pitching duo - Kentucky signee Hailey Nutter and sophomore Macie Bryant - has combined for 463 strikeouts and just 85 hits allowed across 225.1 innings. Nutter threw a no-hitter with 18 strikeouts in their 4-0 semifinal win over Spring Branch Smithson Valley.

The matchup is textbook strength-versus-strength. Melissa’s offense is inarguably the most dangerous in the country, with power at every spot in the lineup. Barbers Hill counters with one of the most dominant staffs in Texas, anchored by two arms capable of silencing even the best lineups. Melissa’s 10-run win over Lake Belton in the regional finals followed by their semifinal rout of Aledo reasserted who they are this season, but Barbers Hill’s arms have overwhelmed about every opponent they’ve seen.

Something must give.

This game has been on everyone's radar for months, so emotions will likely be high. With the No. 1 and No. 3 teams in the country battling for the 5AD1 crown, what more could high school softball fans want?

Follow High School on SI – Texas for live scoring, in-game updates, and complete coverage from the UIL softball championships in Austin.

Also, be sure to check out our Class 1A-3A previews, as well as previews for 4A, 5A and 6A state championships.

You can also check out other state championship game results from Thursday's games for Class 2A Division I, Class 2A Division II, Class 3A Division I, and Class 3A Division II, or read up on Coahoma making history.

You can also watch the game (subscription fee required) on NFHS Network.

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No. 1 Melissa vs. No. 3 Barbers Hill: Texas Class 5A DI state softball championship; preview, live scoring, updates

Lineups

Melissa: Finlee Williams, CF; Kennedy Bradley, 3B; Caigan Crabtree, SS; Hutton “Lulu” Adrian, C; Izzy Gonzzales, 1B; Paisley Needham, LF; Gabby Kuehler, DP; Amariee Bradford, 2B; Hattie Winter, RF; Eloisa Maes, P.

Mt. Belvieu Barbers Hill: Savannah Barrientos, LF; Hailey Hutter, 1B; Aybrie Corona, 2B; Izzy Lawrence, SS; Breanna Norman, CF; JosLynn Cooper, 3B; Zoey Hood, C; Helena Lawrence, DP; AshLynn Cooper, RF; Macie Bryant, P.

The start is being delayed due to prior games running late.

Top 1: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

The game is underway. Finlee Williams went after the first pitch and popped out to center. BarMacie Bryant then got a strikeout and another fly ball for a 1-2-3 inning.

Bottom 1: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Melissa starter Eloisa Maes matched her counterpart with a 1-2-3 frame. with a line out, ground out and pop fly.

Top 2: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Lulu Adrian singles up the third base line to lead off the second to lead off the inning, but she's stranded at second base when Macie Bryant gets an out on a sacrifice and two straight strikeouts to end the threat.

Bottom 2: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

The two elite young pitchers continued their battle, as Eloisa Maes recorded another 1-2-3 inning, including her first strikeout and a pair of groundouts. It's now Macie Bryant's turn.

Top 3: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Huge drama in the top of the third inning. A great at-bat resulted in a leadoff walk for Amairee Bradford. Bradford went first to third on a groundout to first. But Bradford was caught and tagged out at third on a wild play. A hot groundball by Finlee Williams was scooped by third baseman JosLynn Cooper chose to dive and tag Cooper before she could scramble back to the base.

Williams, safe at first on the fielder's choice, then stole second and went to third on a throwing error. Another wild throw to third hit Williams and deflected up the third base line. Williams raced home, but the ball didn't get far and she was thrown out at the plate to end the inning. After all of that, nobody scores.

Bottom 3: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Maes surrenders her first hit on an infield single by AshLynn Cooper, but sandwiches a strikeout with two fly balls to get out of the inning unscathed.

Top 4: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill

Caigan Crabtree smacks a stand-up 1-out double off the wall in left and goes to third on a wild pitch with one out, but Bryant strikes out Lulu Adrian and gets Izzy Gonzales to pop up to end the threat and strand Crabtree at third.

Bottom 4: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

It feels like this game might go on forever at this point with these two young stars pitching. Maes gets another 1-2-3 inning, Getting Hailey Nutter, Aybrie Corona and Izzy Lawrence in order to end the inning.

Top 5: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Paisley Needham drew a leadoff walk for Melissa. As she's done, Macie Bryant came back with back-to-back strikeouts and then got a pop up to squash the threat.

Bottom 5: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Eloisa Maes doesn't seem to be slowing down any. She gets a pop up, strikeout and grounder to complete another 1-2-3 inning.

Top 6: Melissa 0, Barbers Hill 0

Barbers Hill makes a pitching change and goes with Hailey Nutter in place of Macie Bryant for the sixth.

Finlee Williams greets Nutter with a double to right center.

RUN(s) - Kennedy Bradley broke the deadlock with an RBI double off the wall in right and Finlee Williams makes a great slide to beat the tag. Melissa leads 1-0. Bradley advances to third on the throw.

RUN(s) - Bradley scores on a wild pitch. 2-0.

Caigan Crabtree and Lulu Adrian drew back-to-back walks and moved up to second and third on a wild pitch with no outs. Then Izzy Gonzales walked to load the bases with no outs.

RUN(s) - Paisley Needham walked with the bases loaded to force in a run. Melissa extended its lead to 3-0. Bases remained loaded with no outs.

With the bases loaded, Nutter got a foul out and a strikeout for the inning's first outs, then got a liner to end the threat.

Bottom 6: Melissa 3, Barbers Hill 0

A little strangeness in the sixth: Zoey Hood walked to lead off Barbers Hill's half of the inning, but Maes sandwiches a fielder's choice with two strikeouts and escapes, again, unharmed. What went overlooked is Barbers Hill actually batted out of order in the inning. Zoey Hood grounded out to end the bottom of the fifth and led off the bottom of the sixth with a walk. Nothing was said and the inning played out.

Top 7: Melissa 3, Barbers Hill 0

Macie Bryant came back in to pitch, relieving Nutter for the seventh inning.

HOME RUN! Caigan Crabtree smashed a solo home run with two outs for some insurance. Melissa extends it, 4-0. The blast extended Melissa's all-time record home run total to 127 for the season.

Bottom 7: Melissa 4, Barbers Hill 0

Barbers Hill breathed some life in the bottom of the seventh. Hailey Nutter was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and Aybrie Corona singled to put runners at first and second with nobody out.

Izzy Lawrence walked to load the bases for Barbers Hill with nobody out.

RUN(s) - Breanna Norman hits a sacrifice fly to center to score Nutter. Runners move up to second and third. 4-1 with 1 out.

JosLynn Cooper reached safely on a fielders choice to load the bases back up with 1 out.

RUN(s) - Zoey Hood walked to make it 4-2. Bases are still loaded with 1 out.

GAME OVER! Maes got back-to-back strikeouts and Melissa holds on for a dramatic 4-2 win and the state championship.

Recap

Sophomore Eloisa Maes went the distance in the circle and earned the win for Melissa. The right hander allowed 2 runs on 2 hits with 7 strikeouts and 3 walks in 7 innings and improved to 32-1 overall.

Melissa finished with a national record 127 home runs on the season, its last coming on a solo shot by shortstop Caigan Crabtree leading off the top of the seventh. Crabtree led Melissa's offense with a double, triple, RBI and scored two runs.

After struggling against sophomore starter Macie Bryant through the first five innings, the Lady Cardinals got a spark when Barbers Hill changed pitchers to start the sixth and Melissa opened the inning with back-to-back doubles to break the tie.

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