Ask Clay_Athletics' softball seniors to describe their road to the final four, and the same words keep coming up. As they say, they're sisters... on a roller coaster.
The numbers that tell the story of Clay's improbable postseason softball run aren't home run totals, or earned run averages.That's how close Clay came to missing the playoffs, and what they've done once they finally made the cut.
The FHSAA had initially miscalculated the Region 1-4A brackets, incorrectly listing Menendez rather than Matanzas as the winner of District 4-4A and thus excluding Clay from the first published bracket. After recalculating, Clay ended up in the playoffs with the eighth and final seed, with that margin of 0.077 points ahead of ninth-place Panama City Beach Arnold. Squeezing into the playoffs with the last berth has sent the Blue Devils a long way from Green Cove Springs, for three road games and three road victories. Clay took down No. 1 seed Baker County 3-1, won the second-round game 4-1 at Wakulla and then outlasted West Florida 1-0 in a 10-inning marathon at Pensacola, even though Blue Devils seniors had to miss their scheduled graduation ceremony to participate in that game. "All of us together came together, being strong, pushing through the end of the season and postseason," infielder Ema Martin said."We really didn't think we were going to make it into regionals, but we did, and that has just made us even stronger. So we just keep pushing forward." Lewis, a state champion in 2001 who won his 500th career game at Clay earlier this season, said the underdog mentality keeps Clay pressing forward. "It's David and Goliath," Lewis said."Let's go after the big dogs and knock them off, from Baker County, then traveling out to Wakulla, and then again Friday night [at Pensacola West Florida]."Lewis acknowledges this season has been far from easy. At the end of March, Clay was stumbling along at 4-6, coming off a four-game losing skid against admittedly tough opposition: 18-3 against Oakleaf, 4-0 against Episcopal, 12-1 against Keystone Heights, 10-0 against Bartram Trail. The momentum was sputtering.That meant developing the chemistry, the cohesion and the leadership to perform up to their potential. Even in the last two weeks of the season, Clay hit rough waters again, dropping three in a row to Palatka, Baldwin and finally Paxon in the district semifinal. Since the start of the playoffs, though, Clay has turned into a winning machine, allowing two runs to date. "I knew my girls could do it. It was just a matter of getting the opportunity, and when they play their game," Lewis said."We talk about it every time. You play your game, minimize the errors, the mistakes. We're a good enough defense, and we've just got to scrap around a run or two on the board and we're good to go."The junior missed two stretches of the season amounting to nine games in total, because of a combination of hip and back injuries. She didn't pitch in the district tournament or the closing week of the year. But after a four-hitter against Baker County and a three-hitter against Wakulla, Ellis turned in one of her best games ever with a 10-inning shutout against West Florida's Sydney Scapin, who had struck out 37 batters — one away from the state record — in the previous round against Bishop Kenny. "People keep on forgetting that we have a pretty darn good pitcher as well," Lewis said."Throw these five [senior] girls in there on defense that can play it, and I can't ask for anything more." Despite her injuries, she's 8-5 with a 1.07 ERA and 138 strikeouts on the year, and she's batting .381 at the plate as well. "She came back stronger than she was before, and it has just been amazing," catcher Sydney Davis said."She's pitching so well and we're glad to have her back." Davis, among the Blue Devils' five seniors, has also put a stop to action on the basepaths. She retired two runners on stolen base attempts in the regionals. "Our defense was really great. If we keep doing that, we have no problems," Wiseman said."We just have to get a run across the board." If Ellis keeps the pitching going the way she has in the playoffs to date, Clay hopes, getting that run across the board might be enough."I keep on telling them, the sky's the limit," Lewis said."We've knocked off everybody in the region. Now let's go knock everybody else off in the state."The Blue Devils take on another team that surprised many by reaching the final four: Deltona, which was ranked No. 2 in the state but had to overcome a 2021 champion in favored Eustis in a regional final that was delayed to Monday. The Wolves had never previously advanced beyond the second round, but they've won their last eight games. This year, left-handed pitcher Katie McCaw has been consistent in the circle, and the batting order is combining to hit .381, paced by Morgan Davis , Veronica Puckett and Sophie Strempel . But Clay has a knack for clutch hits, particularly senior catcher Sydney Davis . The winner would face Key West or Lake Wales for the title at 4:30 p.m. Friday. Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.
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