SIJHSAA State Finals: #204 Fourth, Trico softball wins it all !

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Pinckneyville (#204) ended one of its most successful seasons ever in girls junior high school softball, placing fourth in the Southern Illinois Junior High School Athletic Association (SIJHSAA) Class S State Finals.

The Lady Tigers, 15-14, lost to Quad-County Athletic Conference (QCAC) rival Giant City 12-6 in the third place game at Coulterville City Park Tuesday afternoon.

#204, coached by Bryant Hale and Cindy Opp, was welcomed back to Perry County by a police and fire escort. The state trophy is the first ever in softball for #204.

Megan Bagley and Maddie Jones each had two hits with Jones knocking in two runs. Taylor Smith and Caitie Opp each knocked in runs.

Opp handled the pitching chores, giving nine hits while striking out four.

Also Tuesday, Trico (Junior High School) claimed the SIJHSAA Class M State Softball title with a 6-4 win over Zeigler-Royalton.

That tournament was played at the Rotary Park Complex in Centralia.

The Junior Lady Pioneers, who slipped past Pinckneyville (Junior High School) to win the Class M Regional last month, also defeated Goreville and Nashville on their way to the championship.

Trico's longtime coach is Steve Toler of Du Quoin.