Fort Walton Beach‘s bid to repeat as Class 4A state softball champions ended Wednesday in an 8-inning, 6-5 loss to Baker County in the regional quarterfinals.
- The Lady Vikings’ 11-game win streak wasn’t enough to carry them past a resilient Lady Wildcats squad that rallied from an early deficit and delivered the final blow in extras.
The Lady Vikings grabbed an early 2-0 lead after Baker County pitcher Grace Masterson issued bases-loaded walks in the second and fourth innings. But the Lady Wildcats came alive in the bottom of the fourth.
Izzy Douglas walked Nasia Green, then gave up a single to Masyn Barlow. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch before Lainey O’Steen singled to score Green and put Baker County on the board. Peyton Shields followed with a sacrifice groundout to score Barlow and tie the game. Matti Minshew singled, and Keyla Nelson hit a sacrifice fly to score O’Steen, giving the Lady Wildcats a 3-2 lead. Mallory Jackson singled, and an error by Macy Borgen allowed two more runs to score, pushing Baker County’s lead to 5-2.
The Lady Vikings answered in the sixth.
Elyse Heymann drew a walk, and after outs by Kelsie Hearne and Borgen, Brenna Williams ripped a single to score Heymann. Anna Beyhl then launched a two-run home run that scored Williams and knotted the game at 5-5.
Neither team could break through in the seventh, sending the game to extra innings.
Fort Walton Beach went down quietly in the top of the eighth, and Baker County seized the opportunity. Sadye Harvey, the courtesy runner stationed at second base, advanced to third on a wild pitch from Douglas. Mallory Jackson then hit a walk-off sacrifice fly to score Harvey, giving Baker County the 6-5 win and bringing Fort Walton Beach’s title defense to a close.
The Lady Vikings will lose Douglas, Hearne, Meredith Miller and Anna Abernathy to graduation. However, Borgen, Williams, Heymann and Ava Blankenship are set to return in 2027.
