The Vienna softball Lady Eagles experienced the incredible highs and the crushing lows of high school athletics in the span of six days last week.

Vienna dominated the field to wrap up the Class 1 District 1 Tournament title by whipping Stoutland 12-2 in the championship game Monday, Oct. 19 at Richland High School, outscoring its opponents a combined 38-2 in the process.

That put the Lady Eagles in the Missouri Class 1 State Tournament Quarterfinals, where they met the Wheatland Lady Mules Saturday, Oct. 24 at Wheatland.

Holding a 7-4 lead entering the seventh inning, Vienna eventually was one strike away from a trip to the Class 1 Final Four. Then the momentum that makes softball such a wonderful and agonizing game rolled in to strike down the Lady Eagle dreams.

With two outs and none on in the top of the seventh inning, Wheatland would load the bases in the top of the seventh, score a run on an infield single then get a three-run single to the centerfield fence by junior Emma Almond to grab an 8-7 advantage.

Vienna was held scoreless in the bottom of the seventh, allowing the Lady Mules to hold on for the improbable 8-7 victory.

The heartbreaking setback ended Vienna’s season with a 19-11 record. The Lady Eagles were ranked No. 8 in the final Class 1 regular-season state poll.

Wheatland (25-9) meets Silex (25-5) at noon Friday, Oct. 30 in the state tournament semifinals at the Killian Softball Complex in Springfield. Silex upset defending Class 1 state champion St. Elizabeth 5-2 in quarterfinal play Saturday, Oct. 24.

In the other Class 1 semifinal game Friday, Gallatin (11-11) takes on Princeton (29-2) at noon.

The Class 1 third-place game is set for 5:15 p.m. Friday while the championship contest is slated for 12:15 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31.

Quarterfinals, Oct. 24 - Wheatland 8, Vienna 7: Vienna opened the quarterfinals by taking advantage of some Wheatland fielding miscues in the bottom of the first inning to grab a 3-0 edge. The Lady Mules returned the favor in the seventh frame.

“It’s very tough,” said Vienna head coach Jess Colliver, who was assistant to head coach Chandler Harker on the last Lady Eagle district champion in 2023. “They turned around and did to us what we did to them in the first (inning). They just lined stuff up at the right time. But that’s high school sports. These are kids and they learn a lot about life lessons playing high school sports.”

After a 1-2-3 top of the first inning, Vienna took the 3-0 advantage in the bottom of the frame when senior Ella Hollis led off with a triple and scored on a groundout. With two outs, sophomore Alexis Curtis singled and junior Kenna Roberds had an infield single. Passed balls and wild pitches moved the runners up and plated two more Vienna runs, as both Curtis and Roberds slide home with runs on wild pitches.

It would stay 3-0 until the top of the third, when the quick-strike ability of the Lady Mules would give them the advantage. Back-to-back errors to start the third gave Wheatland base runners, followed by an RBI single by sophomore Lilyan Davis. After Vienna threw a runner out at home, junior Mariah Box smacked a run-scoring triple, followed by an RBI single from senior Kate Murphy and an RBI double by sophomore Kendrah Box.

The Lady Eagles quickly tied the score 4-4 in the bottom of the third when Hollis led off with a double followed by an RBI single from junior Delaney Schwartze.

Vienna would then regain the advantage with a run in the fourth inning. Freshman Grace Barnhart singled to center followed by a fielder’s choice and a pair of errors loaded the bases. The run scored on an error by the second baseman on a ball hit by sophomore Liberty Rowden, keeping the bases loaded. However, Vienna then grounded into a 6-3 double play to end the inning with just one run scoring.

The Lady Eagles tacked on two runs in the sixth to make it 7-4, as an error and a pair of walks loaded the bases. Curtis then hit a ball that was thrown away in the infield for an error to plate two runs, as Rowden sprinted home from second base on the errant throw for the second run on the play.

Then came the ill-fated top of the seventh for Vienna. After a popup and grounder made it two outs, Wheatland began its rally, putting runners on first and second base on a Vienna error and a single by Murphy. An infield single by K. Box would bring one run home, and another infield single loaded the bases. Almond followed by clubbing a fly ball to the fence, emptying the bases and giving the Lady Mules the one-run lead before a strikeout ended the inning.

Vienna got the tying run on base with two outs, but a line out to centerfield would end things.

Wheatland outhit Vienna 9-8 and the two squads combined for nine errors.

Roberds got three hits and scored a run for the Lady Eagles while Hollis had two hits; Schwartze a hit and two RBI; Curtis a hit, RBI and run; Barnhart a hit, and senior Kaylee Bresnahan a run.

Schwartze went the distance in the pitching circle, giving up four earned runs on nine hits and three walks while fanning seven.

District 1 Championship, Oct 19 - Vienna 12, Stoutland 2: The top-seeded Lady Eagles scored in every inning to put away the third-seeded Stoutland Lady Tigers. Vienna didn’t necessarily pound the ball, as the Lady Eagles had just four hits. However, they took advantage of 11 walks, five errors and a rash of Lady Tiger passed balls and wild pitches.

Hollis set the tone, blasting a home run on the first pitch thrown by Stoutland.

Vienna got two runs in the bottom of the first inning, one in each of the second and third, five in the fourth, two in the fifth and one in the sixth. The game was stopped after six frames due to the run-rule.

During the Lady Eagles’ five-run fourth, Rowden - the team’s No. 3 hitter - was given the ultimate compliment by the Lady Tigers, as she was issued an intentional, bases-loaded walk to force in a run.

There would be no Stoutland comeback, as Schwartze slammed the door. She allowed just one earned run in the pitching circle, scattering four hits and three walks while striking out nine.

And after ending things in the sixth, the celebration began.

“This is something I’ve never felt in four years of playing,” said Hollis, the team’s unquestioned leader. “Our goal was to make it as far as we can; we knew we had a chance (at a district title). It’s team chemistry; we are always trying to lift up each other.”

Hollis had the homer, a single, an RBI and scored twice while Schwartze had two hits, two RBI and a run; Curtis three runs and an RBI; Rowden two RBI and a run; Roberds and Barnhart a RBI and run each; Bresnahan two runs, and sophomore Larissa Rollins a run.

“We need to play our game and do what we do,” Colliver said. “And not make it any bigger than it is. That’s what we try to do. We want to try and win every inning; in the postseason anyone can win at any time Everybody knows we’re not a real speedy team, but we’re going to take advantage of every passed ball and every error. And that’s what we did (against Stoutland).”

Colliver will soon turn her attention to next season, and losing just two seniors, she has plenty coming back to work with.

Of course, replacing Hollis - one of the best players in program history - will not be possible.

“Ella Hollis was a history-making kid,” Colliver said. “Updating some of the program statistics, Ella is dominating in just about every category in Vienna softball. She’s just one of those kids who is very special.”

However, with Schwartze back as a record-setting pitcher and key hitter, Rowden’s record-setting power and ability to play just about every position, and other emerging standouts such as Curtis, Roberds, Rollins and a bunch of freshmen who got a lot of playing time, the team prospects for 2027 are bright.

“It’s no secret we were a young team, with just two seniors and two juniors,” Colliver said. “We’re pretty young and we just had such huge growth this year. The bar was set by those juniors and seniors, and the sophomores and freshmen rose to that bar.”