Pendleton County athletes racked up their share of individual recognition after their teams took on the best in the state. Both baseball and softball fought through their underdog status, both coming close to earning a state title.
In baseball, Pendleton County went to Huntington with a low seed, but dreaming big. Although the Wildcats hoped to draw a first round squad they had not seen this year, it was the very familiar East Hardy Cougars who waited for them in the first round.
As the team had through the three weeks leading up to first round action, the bats got hot while the pitchers kept things cool on the mound. In the tournament, the Wildcats bested defending state champion East Hardy 8-4.
They then ran into a brick wall in the form of tournament Most Valuable Player Luke Tagliente from the Sherman Tide. Just as in every other game this season, Tagliente allowed no earned runs. Wildcat hitters, compared to the rest of Sherman’s opponents, did well in getting four runners on base against the pitcher who recorded a season ERA of 0.00.
Pendleton County pitching kept the team in every inning of every game. Chase Owens and Mason Miller earned spots on the all-tournament team. In the season, Owens had a four and six record with a 3.87 ERA, his record reflecting that he pitched against the Wildcats’ most formidable opponents among bigger schools. Miller had a four and four record with a 4.80 ERA in the season.
In batting, Owens hit .375 and Miller .256.
Owens pitched 6.2 innings of the East Hardy game, allowing six hits and walking two against the defending state champions and second seed for 2026. He was one for three batting in the game with a walk and two runs scored. Miller was one of three with a run batted in and a double.
In the game against Sherman, Owens pitched for 3.1 innings, holding the Tide to three runs while scattering seven hits and walking one. He struck out five during his tenure. With Owens showing fatigue after his near complete game against the Cougars, Sam Yokum, head coach, went to Miller, who allowed two hits in two innings, walking one and striking out two while barring the door on any further scoring.
The Class A all-state baseball squad has yet to be released, but Pendleton County was represented on the all-state and all-tournament softball listings. Susan Vincell and Jess Parker earned honorable mention for their efforts in 2026.
Vincell earned a 12 and two record on the season with a 1.32 ERA. She allowed 54 hits and only 16 walks, but stuck out batters 177 times. That means that walks and hits allowed only total a little less than 40 percent of her strikeout number. From the plate, Vincell hit .433 with 18 RBIs, 12 doubles, three triples, and one home run.
Jess Parker was a rock behind the plate as catcher with a sure glove and a .30-06 for an arm. Like Vincell, she hit for both power and average, .439 with 22 RBIs, nine doubles, four triples, and two home runs.
On the all-tournament team, however, Kinsley Price was named from Pendleton County. During a season in which she developed dramatically, she hit .396 with 21 hits and 19 RBIs.
Owens earned another postseason honor for his work on the basketball court this winter. He scored 21.4 points per game playing on the wing while hauling in approximately five rebounds per contest. He hit 64 percent of his two-point attempts, many times on physical drives to the post, but even more remarkably completed a little less than 50 percent of three-point shots.
On Friday, Owens will compete in the North-South All Star basketball game in South Charleston.
