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Haverling softball beats Wellsville, enters regional tournament
Haverling seniors Caydence Spears and Kaili Witherell talk about their 4-2 win over Wellsville in the Section V Class B crossover to clinch regionals.
- Kaili Witherell’s Haverling Rams made the softball program’s first state championship game appearance.
Haverling’s softball team appeared to pray together one final time.
The Rams’ tearful postgame huddle was an emotional ending following their 4-0 loss to Section II’s Chatham in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class B softball championship game Saturday afternoon at Greenlight Networks Grand Slam Park in Binghamton.
Senior Kaili Witherell, the New York Gatorade Player of the Year who’ll likely become a three-time All-Greater Rochester first team pitcher when the team is announced in July, guided Haverling’s magical run into the program’s first state championship game.
It was a similar scene to the conclusion of Haverling’s 2024 season, which ended with a loss to Wellsville — the eventual 2024 state champion — in the Section V Class B final for the third straight year. Witherell and her teammates were distraught.
This time, two weeks after avenging previous years’ losses with a win over Wellsville in the Section V Class B crossover to advance to regionals, Class B1 champion and state-ranked No. 2 Haverling (21-4) soothed their tears with Crumbl cookies after a crushing setback to top-ranked Chatham (22-3).
Haverling coach Rachel Ratchford’s Rams entered Saturday’s state title game with flying colors. They rode a 17-game winning streak since their loss to Section II Class AAA’s Colonie — once ranked No. 1 in the state — in the prestigious James “Ace” Morabito Memorial tournament May 4. The Rams allowed just two runs through a pair of regional wins and Friday’s convincing 6-0 win over Section IX’s Highland in the state semifinals.
“They were definitely pumped (entering the state final),” Ratchford said. “I think everybody’s everybody’s exhausted, but they were definitely hyped up (and) ready to go.”
Witherell struck out nine and scattered six hits. The Division I Texas State commit was sensational in Friday’s NYS semifinal, when Witherell retired 20 straight batters during a two-hitter and went 4-for-4 at the plate. Witherell’s outstanding postseason performance earned her a spot as on the Democrat and Chronicle’s first-ever Silver Slugger team, which honored stars from the Section V final and regional tournaments.
In Saturday’s final, senior left-handed catcher Caydence Spears broke up a no-hitter with a one-out single in the seventh. Senior Ryleigh Laverty followed with a single of her own, sending a chopper to third before flying to first, but was ultimately called out at second base after the Panthers recovered from a throwing to first.
Chatham coach John Brantley’s Panthers were led by sophomore pitcher Skylar Groom’s 11-strikeout two-hitter. Groom also singled from the two-hole in the first inning. It was the first of three first-inning hits that helped Chatham — a 6-3 winner over Section VIII’s Carle Place after overcoming a 3-0 deficit in Friday’s state semifinal — take an early 2-0 lead. Rylie Barden’s two-run single in the sixth gave the Panthers a four-run advantage.
“It might’ve been the best performance we’ve had all year at the right time,” Brantley said.
— Marquel Slaughter is a journalist for the Democrat and Chronicle, specializing in high school sports. He won numerous Associated Press and NYNPA awards for his work in print and broadcasting throughout his 15-year career as a reporter. Follow him @MarquelSports on X and Instagram for exclusive interviews, photos and videos. You can email him at mslaughter1@gannett.com.
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