Center Grove softball punches ticket to Class 4A final: 'Enjoy every second of it.'
GREENWOOD — Alyssa Coleman promised to make it quick. The Center Grove coach was convening with her players in centerfield and didn't want to delay their celebration of Saturday's 5-1 victory over Floyd Central in the Class 4A semistate championship game.
"You've earned every bit of this. You should be so proud of yourselves," the longtime coach said. "I hope you're not done yet, but I cannot wait to watch you enjoy this. Every second of it. Bravo."
And with that, Coleman and the players huddled together before they dispersed to meet with family and friends.
Center Grove softball is headed to state for the first time since its 2019 state championship run.
"It was that simple, just enjoy the moment," said Coleman, whose team will play Crown Point next weekend at Purdue's Bittinger Stadium (date and time TBA).
"Look at the wall they have to play in front of — and they get to add to that," she continued, gesturing towards the team's collection of postseason accolades lined across the outfield wall. "The only thing they should care about is enjoying it, because nothing will change how we feel about them. They're still going to be the same great team, no matter the outcome, so they best just enjoy it. No one game defines anything."
'She's a different breed': IU softball commit overcame 3 ACL tears to lead Greenfield-Central
Noblesville honors late assistant: 'If you were coached by him, you knew what love was.'
Here is what else to know from Saturday's semistate festivities at Russ Milligan Field in Greenwood.
Last year, it was Barrett in the circle, slamming the door against a very talented Castle team in the semistate semifinals.
This year, it was Barrett with a microphone, serenading her teammates and coaches with a little karaoke before they hit Saturday afternoon. "It really brought up the vibes," the sophomore said, with Coleman crediting specifically her rendition of "Let It Go." (It was a 10/10).
"It really brought the vibes," Barrett smiled.
Of equal importance: Barrett was on fire Saturday. She went 2-for-3 with a triple, an RBI and two runs scored in the run-rule win over Terre Haute North, then went 2-for-3 with another triple, another run scored and three RBIs in the nightcap vs. Floyd Central.
The 5-9 infielder has been very dependable this season (.363, 33 hits), but the semistate stage has really brought the best out in her.
"She just loves the moment," Coleman said. "And that's such a cool thing because you can't teach that. You can't coach that. That's something she has that makes her so special."
I'll dive deeper into this — the excellence of CG's pitchers in 2025 — next week, but the Center Grove pitching tandem of junior Riley Fuhr and sophomore Kara Biever spun another gem Saturday night, limiting Floyd Central to one run on four hits with nine strikeouts.
Floyd Central junior shortstop Addy Ware credited Fuhr with consistently hitting the outside corner (an especially effective approach vs. a lineup that enjoys pulling the ball), then just as they started catching on, Center Grove brought in Biever for the final three innings and her changeup had the opposition in absolute fits.
The Highlander hitters were out on their front foot a lot in game one vs. Greenfield-Central, so the Center Grove pitchers likely knew how to attack them coming in, Floyd Central junior second baseman Coleman said, and the hitters didn't adjust quickly enough. "Props to their pitchers. They're really good."
Saturday felt like the beginning of something, an extended postseason back-and-forth between the two sides. Yes the Trojans graduate some key pieces, including five of their leading hitters (Mae Munson, Sydney Herrmann, Ana Powell and Hayden Baird), but theirs is the type of program that reloads rather than rebuilds.
On the other side, Floyd Central is set to return all but one player off this year's roster, with its core of returners headlined by upperclassmen Ware, Coleman, Breleigh Lockhart, Kiersten Fiedler, Nora Koehler and Emmy Miller, plus rising freshman Natalie Curtis and sophomore pitcher Adeline Shultz, who ran a leg of the 4x800-meter relay at state then started against Center Grove.
IHSAA softball semistate: Statewide scores, schedule, recaps
It won't be easy getting back, but both teams will most certainly be built for it.
"We belong here for sure," said Ware, a 2026 Florida State commit. "I don't know if that's where people thought we would be, but we knew."
"I mean, they were like, 'Who is this team from the south?'" added Coleman, who's also a standout basketball player. "It's special to be in this moment always, but this is where we belong. We knew what we wanted and knew we could do this at the beginning of the season. It just would've been nice to take it home. … We know we have the tools coming back. This will be motivation for sure."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Bills Young Receiver Committed To Improving
Bills Young Receiver Committed To Improving originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Buffalo Bills weren't the only ones disappointed with the lack of production from their first draft pick of the 2024 class. Advertisement In fairness, Keon Coleman wasn't pleased either. The 33rd overall selection from the 2024 draft struggled with injuries throughout his rookie season. Coleman caught just 29 passes for 556 yards and four touchdowns during his first season with the team. He made just three catches in Buffalo's three playoff games. Coleman knows he needs to do more than be a deep threat in Buffalo's offense. He wants to prove he can be the kind of #1 receiver the team has been missing since they traded away Stefon Diggs. The first step to accomplishing that goal is to ensure that he becomes better at the little things that are required of a receiver. Advertisement "You gotta be more efficient here. You gotta get out of this break. You got to stack your DB. You got to give Josh more room to throw the ball. You gotta catch that. You gotta make that block," Coleman explained during minicamp. "Just different things like that. Calling out everything that you're doing wrong to make it right." Buffalo has plenty of receiving threats on the roster. Coleman is a part of a group with Khalil Shakir, Dalton Kincaid and Joshua Palmer. The pressure won't be on him to make 100 catches or record over 1,500 receiving yards. He is, however, expected to see a sizable increase in targets this season. Now that he's fully healthy this offseason, there is a belief that Coleman can be a leading figure in Buffalo's passing attack. He needs to find a way to improve his game this offseason. Advertisement Related: Hailee Steinfeld 'Stunned' Bills Josh Allen With Wedding Gown Related: Bills' Reason For Super Bowl Optimism Has Defensive Flavor This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
4 days ago
- USA Today
Bills WR Keon Coleman on rookie year: 'You got to be better, simple as that'
Bills WR Keon Coleman on rookie year: 'You got to be better, simple as that' The Buffalo Bills and receiver Keon Coleman want to see more from the young pass catcher in his second season as a pro. "You want to know exactly what I see?" Coleman said of his thoughts while looking back at the film from his first year with the team. "You got to be better, simple as that." In 2024, the team's offense ranked No. 2 in scoring, was top-10 in rushing and passing yards, and yielded an MVP season for quarterback Josh Allen. Coleman finished second among Bills receivers in passing yards in an efficiency-based distribution offense called by coordinator Joe Brady, yet he realizes he left a lot on the plate in his rookie campaign. The 33rd overall selection in last year's NFL draft, he showed flashes of his abilities, but also missed four weeks due to injury during the second half of the season and didn't quite bounce back fully to have the potential impact he could have. He realizes he needs to make the most of his opportunities in this offense when he gets them. "You gotta be more efficient here. You gotta get out of this break. You got to stack your DB. You got to give Josh more room to throw the ball. You gotta catch that. You gotta make that block. You got to get that extra effort on the touchdown block, so if Jimbo (James Cook) breaks it, he's up the sideline. Just different things like that. Calling out everything that you're doing wrong to make it right." He's shown improved strength and conditioning going into year two, and looked good on routes and in his connection with Allen during 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills at mandatory minicamp, but also had some occasional drops and decision-making mistakes. Nonetheless, Coleman appears committed to the growth and progression, which is important for the 22-year-old as well as for his quarterback. 'We've had a couple of conversations and he knows that he wants to be better,' MVP Josh Allen said in April, via WGR 550. 'He sent me a couple of long texts of wanting to be better, and we're going to continue to work extremely hard to try to get on the same page. He's got so much ability, he's so athletic, he's already put on some weight and he's gotten a little bit stronger, so I'm excited to see his progression and he's still so young, so he's still got a long ways to go in terms of learning the nuances of the wide receiver position, so I'm so excited for his future because of the ability that he has, it's off the charts.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
How friendship and $27 turned into a $274,500 Caitlin Clark rookie card
Friendship and a 'pity' buy for less than the price of a full tank of gas turned into the second most expensive women's sports trading card in the history of the hobby. A Caitlin Clark one-of-a-kind rookie card sold for $274,500 on Saturday night through Goldin Auctions, three months after Phoenix resident Valerie Coleman landed the card for only $27 during a WNBA card box break from streamers 'Mrs. Flip' on Whatnot. Advertisement The card — Clark's 2024 Panini Prizm WNBA Black Finite one-of-one rookie card with a mint 9 grade from PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) — became the most expensive public sale for a non-autographed Clark card, as well as the second-highest price for any Clark card of any kind. Only the Indiana Fever guard's 2024 Prizm WNBA Signatures Gold Vinyl one-of-one autographed rookie card sold for more at $366,000 on March 29. Coleman hopes Clark will learn about the sale of this card… but only to spread the word about the good Coleman hopes to bring with the lucrative boon. Coleman started collecting cards as a child with her siblings and family members in West Virginia in the 1990s and maintained interest in the hobby simply for her love of sports and collecting. She ventured over to collecting WNBA cards essentially to pick up keepsakes of the players on her fantasy team. Advertisement She discovered 'Mrs. Flip,' a WNBA box breaker stream run by Mandy Stalmack and Matt Oomen of Ludington, Mich. and quickly developed a friendship with the energetic 'Flips.' It was always less about landing lucrative cards for Coleman with 'The Flips,' rather she just wanted to help her new friends who loved cards as much as she did make a living. 'I'm really just committed to going to their show to support them from a financial standpoint,' Coleman said. 'I love what they're doing with their lives (Stalmack and Oomen are openly in recovery from substance abuse) and what they're doing. Whatever came out of the break was always fine with me. The supporting part, that was important.' How Stalmack and Oomen decided to start their WNBA card channel spawned from their own stroke of luck. Advertisement The couple landed a Bo Nix 2024 Panini Gold Standard one-of-one Nike Swoosh jersey patch card in an online box break in September. They took a gamble by holding on to the card rather than cashing in instantly. Their patience paid off with Nix improving during the season, meaning his card values jumped along the way. Two months later, their Nix card sold for $3,800 on eBay while on their way to visit family in Missouri during Thanksgiving. On the same trip, Stalmack said she stumbled across a Whatnot channel selling WNBA cards. 'As soon as I saw them pull the first Caitlin (Clark card) and everybody was going crazy, I said (to Oomen), 'Babe, hear me out,'' Stalmack said. 'And so we took that money from the Bo Nix (card), and we started the Mrs. Flip channel, and so we started that in December.' 'Off one card,' Oomen chimed in, almost still astonished as the origin of the stream. Advertisement 'The Flips' were off and running with their WNBA channel, buying sealed cases of cards leading up to when the 2024 Panini Prizm WNBA blaster boxes (six packs per box, four cards per pack sold in retail stores) went on sale. With no direct allocation of products from any card manufacturers, Oomen said the couple drives across Michigan and neighboring states every day trying to scoop up as many WNBA blaster boxes as possible from retailers. During a random team break (where paying participants are assigned a random WNBA team and get all the cards opened that are associated with it) on the afternoon of March 15, Coleman wanted to close out the slow-moving process of filling all the available spots to allow The Flips to rip open the packs in the boxes. One of the two spots remaining was a 'chaser' team. 'Chaser' teams are a handful of the top teams that buyers would hope to land in a break. If the buyer of the spot lands a 'chaser' team, those handful of buyers will then be put into another random draw for those top teams. 'Nobody wanted to do it (buy the spots),' Oomen said. 'But Val, she's been with us from the beginning. … She pretty much did this out of pity just to help us out.' Coleman won the final 'chaser' slot for $27 and then secured the Fever by another random chance. Advertisement Stalmack sifted through the cards from the Prizm packs with her thumbnails splashed with bright red polish and three jewel stickers on each nail. She was casually speaking to someone messaging her from the live chat during the break as she moved the top card from the pack when the Clark card caught her and Oomen by surprise. 'Oh my God!' Stalmack shouted. Oomen chimed in asking, 'Is that a one of one?' She turned the card over to reveal it was indeed the most sought-after non-autographed card in the set. The Flips lost their minds, screaming 'Holy! and 'Oh my God!' Meanwhile in Phoenix, Coleman said she shrieked so loud that security cameras from her home caught her joy in real time. The $274,500 Clark card came from a box bought at Walmart in Indiana, Oomen said. The retailer originally sold 2024 Prizm WNBA blaster boxes for about $40 each. 'I remember waking up, and I told him (Oomen), 'There's something big in this room.' And we had no clue what we were about to pull,' Stalmack said. Advertisement No one felt comfortable having the Clark card shipped. So Coleman flew to Grand Rapids, Mich., which is about two hours from The Flips' home, not long after hitting the card in the break. Coleman, Stalmack, and Oomen met at the airport to exchange hugs and the card. And as a thank you, Coleman will treat 'The Flips' to a Phoenix vacation in August where the trio will attend a Fever-Phoenix Mercury game. Her good fortune will benefit more than just herself and The Flips, though. Coleman volunteers with animal rescues in Phoenix, and now she hopes her willingness to donate a sizable portion of the profits from the card will spur more support. Three animal rescue centers — Sky Sanctuary Rescue, Handover Rover, Miri's Haven — will hold fundraisers in the hopes to raise $50,000 from the public. Coleman will match all donations to the animal rescue centers up to $50,000 with the goal to raise $100,000. 'That was my first thought when I pulled the card. I was like, 'Oh my gosh, I can help so many people and animals with this,' Coleman said. Advertisement And why does Coleman hope the word spreads to Clark about her aspirations for the money received from the card? Coleman wrote on a pinned post on her Instagram page, 'If Caitlin Clark herself somehow sees this, I'll add $10,000 to the donation. She changed my life, so now let's change some more lives.' The Athletic maintains full editorial independence in all our coverage. When you click or make purchases through our links, we may earn a commission. This article originally appeared in The Athletic. Indiana Fever, WNBA, Memorabilia & Collectibles 2025 The Athletic Media Company
