By Stephen Smoot
On April 3, Pendleton County ran into a Lincoln High School softball juggernaut. The top team in the Big 10 conference of North Central West Virginia high school teams put a hurting on the Wildcats.
But since then, Pendleton County softball has been on a roll. On the seventh came a 20-1 win over Pocahontas County, then later in the week a 10-4 win over Moorefield. A big 16-1 win over Tucker County and a 16-5 triumph over the Tygarts Valley Bulldogs were all part of the Wildcats playing their best ball of the season heading into the Bub Riggleman Memorial Tournament in Moorefield last weekend.
The tournament typically pits the best area smaller schools against Class AAA and AAAA teams from the farther Eastern Panhandle. The Pendleton County Wildcats happen to be the defending champions after rolling through the slate of games last year, winning all.
With similar swagger in 2026, Pendleton County sauntered in and took out two big schools on the first day of competition.
Jaycee Thompson has emerged as a strong pitching partner to ace hurler Susan Vincell. Thus far on the year, Thompson has three wins against zero losses and has allowed 14 earned runs in 14.2 innings pitched. On the year, she has eight strikeouts and her defense has played strong in support.
She took the mound against Hampshire and dispatched the side in order with six pitches in the top of the first.
The Trojans put the first three Wildcat batters on in the bottom of the first. Leadoff hitter Molly Rowe, then Kinsley Price, reached on errors. Jess Parker then drew a walk on four straight. With one out and Thompson up to hit, Rowe picked up the first run of the game as all three runners on base took off. Price also scored on an error.
Up 2-0, and with runners at the corners, Jaiden Mitts walked with the bases loaded. Chesnee Colaw than delivered a clutch play on two balls and one strike, putting the ball in play and reaching safely on an error as Thompson and Parker found their way home and set the score at 4-0.
Hampshire responded in the top of the second, leading off with a single. Thompson struck out the next hitter, but dinged the subsequent batter with a pitch. She then picked up the second out with a strikeout. However, with two outs Hampshire scored two runs, but Thompson shut down the inning by getting the last batter to pop out in the infield.
Laney Bowers led off the bottom of the second with a walk. Then with one out Price smacked a double to center. Parker came up with Bowers on third and Price on second, but not for long. Bowers saw an opportunity and swiped home. Price not long after found her way third on an error, then scored on a passed ball. These hustle plays scored two runs, but fleeced Parker out of two RBIs as she belted a double to left. Parker came home when Susan Vincell drove a fly ball to left field and reached second base safely as Parker crossed home plate.
Through the end of the third, Wildcat batters hammered Trojan pitching, sending them home with a 19-3 defeat.
On Friday, Pendleton County also faced Spring Mills. When the Wildcats upended the Cardinals in the same tournament last year, the losing side was a top 10 team in West Virginia Class AAAA.
This year, Spring Mills has won 11 games, savaging Martinsburg, South Charleston, Hedgesville, and Moorefield twice. Yet Pendleton County remains a tough out for the tough squad from Berkeley County. Spring Mills is currently 10th in their class and the Wildcats seventh in Class A.
Neither team scored in the first. Vincell allowed a single to the leadoff batter, but used her defense to pick up two outs before striking out the last hitter of the inning.
Leading off the top of the second, Thompson grounded towards short and raced into first safely. Spring Mills picked up an out in the next at bat, but a Callie Judy sacrifice bunt pushed Thompson to third base. From there Mitts sent a line drive into deep right field for a double and an RBI.
The Cardinals went into the bottom of the second down one run to nothing, Vincell masterfully set down three of four, allowing one batter on base by hitting them, but no allowing her to advance.
Pitchers dominated until the top of the fourth when the Wildcats blew the game wide open. Vincell led off with a double, followed by a Thompson single. Colaw came to the plate with runners at the corners. She worked the count full, then sent a line drive to center, driving home Judy and setting the score at 3-0.
Next came Judy who swung and missed a strike three, but alertly raced down the first base line when the ball escaped the catcher. Thompson scored on the play. Next, Mitts picked up an RBI when she grounded into a fielder’s choice. Colaw crossed home plate and set the score at 4-0.
Later in the inning, a Price infield single sent Bowers home and pushed the lead to 6-0.
Spring Mills could not answer in their half of the fourth. Vincell allowed a double and a walk, but used a strikeout and her defense to keep the opponents scoreless, at least to that point. In the top of the fifth, Pendleton County put up two additional runs for an 8-0 score.
The Cardinals, however, posted two runs in the bottom of the fifth, then retired the side in order in the top of the sixth.
Vincell faced a gut check moment. With five innings under her belt, Vincell could have been tiring, but instead buckled down. She struck out the first batter in four pitches, then used the defense of Mitts in center and Thompson at first to deny Spring Mills an opportunity to erode the lead further.
Parker led off the seventh with a single, Madison Arbaugh checking in to run for her, but the opposing pitcher allowed no padding of the lead.
Spring Mills led off the bottom of the seventh challenging Vincell. The leadoff batter took eight pitches to drive a home run to left, but Vincell shut down the side to seal the complete game victory, 8-3.
Musselman, however, ended the Wildcat run on Saturday. Parker drove Rowe home for an early 1-0 lead over the Applemen, yet another big school on the Wildcat slate.
Vincell once again took the mound, shutting out Musselman from the base path until a solo home run in the third tied up the game. She also retired the side in order in the fourth, but gave up a home run in the top of the seventh that proved to be the game winner for Musselman, 2-1.
Pendleton County now looks at the last three weeks of the season with a 10 and three record and perhaps another possible deep run come May.
