The best season in the history of Bourbon High School softball concluded on May 13 when the Lady Warhawks fell to Houston in the Class 2 District 3 championship game in Potosi.

Bourbon had never reached the district finals before and finished with a 17-6 record, four wins more than they had in their top season last year.

The blue and white crushed Grandview (Hillsboro) in the quarterfinals and decisively defeated Salem in the semifinals to advance to the finals. Bourbon’s games versus Salem and Houston are detailed below.

After losing the first two games of the season, the Lady Warhawks rattled off eight-straight wins and never looked back. Bourbon was powered by a potent offense and a dominant pitcher, senior Annalise Gobin. 

Bourbon head coach Randy Payne spoke following the Houston game about how his team started clicking early in the season following the two losses.

“Our bats started to come alive when we started putting hits together after the first week or two,” Payne said. “And, you know, Anna started throwing really well, spotting her pitches, defense picked up a little bit, and then it’s anybody’s ball game then. And the bats really came through with her on the mound.”

Gobin put together a fantastic senior season, striking out 165 hitters in 96 1/3 innings to go along with a stellar 1.96 earned run average. She finished her career with 404 strikeouts, the most ever by a Bourbon softball player.

She spoke after her final game about what she will miss most about playing for Bourbon.

“I’ll miss the girls and the environment we had. We had a great team and a lot of fun times,” Gobin said. 

When asked what it means to her when she hears about her illustrious accolades, Gobin added, “It means a lot. I’m really grateful for the opportunities I’ve got. And again, I couldn’t do it without my team. But I’ve worked really hard, and it’s definitely nice to get those milestones.”

Two days later on decision day at Bourbon High School, Gobin announced that she will continue her academic and softball career at Culver-Stockton College in Canton, MO.

While the Lady Warhawks will have to replace the team’s only senior, Gobin, Bourbon will bring back the entire rest of their team along with the additions from the current eighth-grade class. Starters Hailie Kahmke and Maddie Blanton will return as seniors and Bourbon’s top three hitters — Ella Biles, Lauryn Hercules and Kinzey Waldron — were sophomores and have two more seasons to contribute to their team’s powerful offense.

Biles finished the year with team-highs in batting average and runs batted in, despite missing three games for a field trip. She had an outstanding .587 batting average and drove in 47 runs out of the cleanup spot.

Hercules hit .521, leading the Lady Warhawks with 10 triples, 46 runs scored and 27 stolen bases while hitting leadoff. 

Waldron had a .522 batting average, clubbed a team-high 11 doubles and 3 home runs and drove in 39 runs while primarily hitting sixth.

Kahmke and freshman catcher Savanna Vance also hit over .300, showing that Bourbon’s potent offense goes beyond its big three of Biles, Hercules and Waldron.

Kahmke hit .367 with five doubles, four triples, a home run, 19 runs batted in and 16 stolen bases.

Vance had a .302 batting average, with four doubles, a triple, a home run, twenty runs batted in and threw out 11 runners trying to steal from her catcher’s position.

Fellow freshman starters Brynn Miller and Bree Bouse showed that they can play the corner outfield positions well and gained confidence while ascending at bat as the season progressed.

With a powerful lineup and much-needed experience playing in high-leverage games, Payne said that he’s excited about the future of his program.

“We’re super excited about the future. All of our offense is coming back,” he said. “We do have girls that pitch, but with Anna on the team this year, we just threw her out there every day because she’s really consistent for us. But we’ll fill that hole, and we’ll keep moving forward.”

Lady Warhawks win revenge game over Salem in district semifinals, head to championship game

Number three-seeded Bourbon returned to Potosi on May 11 to take on the number two-seeded Salem Lady Tigers in the semifinals of the Class 2 District 3 Tournament. The Lady Warhawks fell 10-3 to Salem on March 25 but made sure that their second matchup would go differently.

Bourbon immediately got on the board in the top of the first on a single from Ella Biles that scored Lauryn Hercules. Two batters later, Kinzey Waldron laced a double, plating two Lady Warhawks to give Bourbon a 3-0 after the first.

The Lady Warhawks would add one run in the second, two in the fourth and four in the fifth as senior pitcher Annalise Gobin kept the Lady Tiger’s hitters at bay throughout the contest.

Bourbon built up a 10-1 lead heading into the final inning before cruising to an eventual 11-3 victory, sending the Lady Warhawks to the district championship game for the first time in school history.

Gobin pitched all seven innings, striking out 11 Lady Tigers, while scattering six hits and allowing just one earned run.

Hailie Kahmke led the Lady Warhawks with four base hits including three triples, two runs batted in, three runs scored and a stolen base. She also repeatedly guided her team through the emotional ebbs and flows of the game, giving the Lady Warhawks a boost of positive energy every time her team needed a big hit or a pick me up in the field.

Kinzey Waldron also had a huge game for Bourbon out of the number six spot in the batting order. She doubled twice, singled and drove in a game-high five runs. Three of those runs batted in came with two outs, serving as back-breaking hits to the morale of Salem.

Biles finished with two hits, three runs scored, two runs batted in and a pair of stolen bases. Maddie Blanton roped a double to the right-center field gap, singled, walked and drove in two runs. Brynn Miller also crushed a double and scored and Savanna Vance singled and scored twice.

Salem was led by senior second baseman Shaylee Thomas who singled twice and drove in a run in the last game of her high school career.

Bourbon falls to powerhouse Houston in district finals

The Warhawks returned to Potosi on May 13 to compete for the district championship against the Houston Lady Tigers, who defeated Steelville 31-0 in the quarterfinals, and beat Potosi 11-4 in the quarterfinals.

Bourbon scored one run in the top of the first inning on a single from Biles that scored Hercules. Houston responded with five runs in the bottom of the first inning to take an early 5-1 lead.

Unfortunately for Bourbon, its potent offense would be shut down the rest of the game by Houston senior starting pitcher Lily Kincaid. Houston added five more runs in the third inning to balloon its lead to 10-1, where the score would remain for the next few innings.

Facing a potential run rule, the Lady Warhawks didn’t just lay down. Gobin hurled scoreless frames in the fourth and fifth innings against Houston’s powerful attack. Houston finally rallied to score one run in the bottom of the sixth and walked off with an 11-1 victory to take the district title.

Bourbon was held to just five hits in six innings. Miller was Bourbon’s only hitter to record multiple base hits, as the freshman left fielder belted a single and a double. Hercules, Biles and Bree Bouse all singled, accounting for the Lady Warhawk’s only other base hits.

Gobin struck out four Houston hitters in five-plus innings in the circle, scattering eight hits and four earned runs.

Kincaid whiffed five Bourbon batters in six innings to earn the win and senior second baseman Katy Evans led Houston at the plate with two doubles, two walks, two runs scored and three stolen bases.