Calvary softball’s national championship finally becomes official
By DOUG IRELAND, Journal Sports
It wasn’t a big surprise, but it was a huge relief.
Calvary softball All-State junior infielder Baylor Bockhaus broke the long-awaited news to her coach, Tiffany Frazier Wood, about 12:30 Wednesday afternoon.
The Lady Cavaliers held on to the national No. 1 ranking in the MaxPreps.com high school softball top 25 poll finalized Thursday. They’d been in the top spot for nearly two months, even before winning their sixth straight state title. That and their final 37-1 record earned a first-ever national championship.
It’s the first MaxPreps national softball crown for a Louisiana team in the 15-year-history of the poll. In any sport, it’s the first national championship this century for a local school. Evangel’s unbeaten 1999 football team was a consensus national champ with No. 1 rankings in five of eight polls and that is believed to be the only other Shreveport-Bossier team to finish at the top in the country.
“I felt relieved the final standings held, and then I was just so excited,” said Wood.
“I called my dad (Greg Frazier, an assistant coach) and he started crying. Been a little anxious waiting on that final ranking to come out, and since it has, it’s been unbelievably awesome.”
Right after Bockhaus called, Wood heard from avid Cavalry supporter Clint Hortman and many more. She took a few moments to access the MaxPreps website and read the official announcement and watch the site’s video report.
Quickly she went to the team’s GroupMe text circle, offering congratulations and advice.
“Take a minute to enjoy it now,” she said. “We’re always on to the next thing, and a lot of them are doing travel ball this summer, but it’s important to take this in. It’s now official, how much they’ve been able to accomplish.”
Wood’s team outscored opponents by nearly 300 runs, 391-36.
Calvary’s dominant run came with a relatively young roster – the Lady Cavs return all but two seniors, two-time Miss Louisiana Softball winner Kynzee Anderson and all-district outfielder Abby Sims.
Anderson, a Georgia signee, posted a 30-1 pitching record with a 0.61 ERA and a staggering 318 strikeouts in 171 innings pitched. She set a state record with 129 career wins.
Bockhaus clubbed 21 home runs and collected an astounding 69 RBI, while leading Calvary with a .486 batting average.
Another All-State junior infielder, Loren Sivils, hit .462 with 60 RBI, cracking 15 homers. All-State freshman outfielder Brynn Robinson batted .470 with 30 RBI and stole 13 of 14 bases.
Three more Calvary standouts, all juniors, were honorable mention Class 2A All-State. Carlie Guile was disruptive on the bases, with 28 steals in 30 attempts to go with a .431 batting average and 34 RBI. Reese Walker hit .425 and also drove in 34 runs. Mallory Carver brought home 44 runners and hit .347.
Wood, whose 400th career win came in the Select Division III state championship game win over Parkview Baptist, was thrilled by the scope of the national title.
“To represent Louisiana, to represent this part of the state, this community and of course this school is an incredible feeling,” she said. “It’s a program me and my dad have built, with great support, and it’s taken so much time, effort and energy, from the kids who came before this team to raise the standard, to the kids on this team who have been a part of the past state championships, the time and pride they’ve put in.”
Every champion gets asked the same question after they’ve finished the season – can you repeat? With the national title secured, Wood did not back away from raising the stakes, saying another national title is in the bullseye for 2027.
“Yes. The answer is yes. That’s going to be our goal. The goal is always to win a state championship, and the added stuff is just extra goodness, but we have a really good group coming back and some young kids who have been waiting to get out and make an impact. This sets a tone, a standard we want to be at, and everybody’s hungry and excited to uphold this title.
“Everybody’s going to be coming for us – they already were – but to beat the Number 1 team in the nation would be really something. It’s a bigger target on our back. When you play for Calvary softball, you have to learn to expect that, and it kinda fuels the fire, keeps you going.”
A more immediate challenge: how to celebrate the MaxPreps title?
The 2026 seniors are headed off to college. The returning players are scattered around this summer. There’s a championship ring to design and get produced, along with banners, signs, commemorative gear … and until now, Wood hasn’t wanted to consider those plans.
“Lots of things will be in the works,” she said. “This could be a once-in-a-lifetime thing so you want to do it right for everyone.”
Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com