Bullard softball ready for first state championship game - Tyler Morning Telegraph (original) (raw)

BULLARD – Five Bullard seniors – Brooklyn Brannen, Kirstin Malone, Emery Baker, Denim Boles and Kenzi Roberts – will play their final high school softball game together on Friday.

That game, however, is for the Class 4A Division 1 championship – Bullard’s first state championship game in program history.

“It’s a blessing to be here, especially with this team,” Brannen said. “We’ve worked so hard, us seniors, the past four years to get here. I think we’ve heard it, and it’s time to finish strong.”

“It means everything to me,” Malone said. “I’m so excited and so blessed. We have worked so hard for four years now, finally getting to the place we wanted to get forever. It’s amazing.”

“It means everything,” Baker said. “This has been the senior class’s dream since we were little. We’ve all played together, and this is what we’ve worked for for so long, so we’re really excited.”

“The Bullard softball program is so special to the community,” Boles said. “I remember being in junior high and going and watching the girls play for state. Now, I get to do it myself, it’s something very special, and I’m excited for it.”

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“It’s just so amazing because we’re so close,” Roberts said. “The group that we have this year has worked so hard for this and especially for the seniors, we’ve worked for this since we were little, so it’s really cool.”

“We saw them step into Region III as freshmen, and that was a tough loss in the regional final,” Bullard head softball coach Julie Murry said. “We saw them as sophomores lose in the regional final to a really great Liberty squad again. Obviously an early exit last year that kind of fueled us a little bit honestly. I want the world for all of these kids, but to see these seniors have this moment and to see them stay grounded through all of these moments, it’s brought a lot of joy to me for sure.”

Bullard (36-7-1), which won Region III this year, will take on Prosper Richland (35-8) at 10 a.m. Friday at Red and Charline McCombs Field in Austin.

When the current seniors were in the seventh grade in 2021, the Lady Panthers reached the state tournament out of Region II and lost to state champion Liberty in the state semifinals. In 2022, Bullard got back to the state semifinals, losing that time to Sweeny, which fell to Liberty in the Class 4A title game.

Liberty eliminated Bullard in the playoffs in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Liberty went on to lose to state champion Corpus Christi Calallen in the state title game in 2023 and 2024 and in the state semifinals in 2025. Liberty is back in the state finals, but in Class 4A Division 2 against Brock.

Calallen’s reign as state champion has ended, though, as Bullard took out Calallen in the Class 4A Division 1 Region III finals last week with a sweep (3-2, 5-4).

“Personally for me, we’ve been chasing this as a coaching staff for my whole career,” Murry said. “The closer it gets the more you want to slow down time and have the ability to soak up the moments with these kids. It means a ton for me personally as a coach to see these kiddos to take the steps to get into this game. We’re excited to see the next step this week, one step closer, so we’re excited.”

The Lady Panthers have won 22 straight games with the last loss coming March 9 to Louisiana LHSAA Select Division III softball state champion and No. 6 team nationally Shreveport Calvary Baptist Academy, 3-1, which Murry said is the Lady Panthers’ only seven-inning defeat this season.

“They have a huge trust factor and buy-in for what our program is about,” Murry said. “They work hard year-round for us, even if they’re in other sports, preparing them for these games and these moments. And I do think their ability to love one another and support one another and stay consistent has really helped us. They trust the leadership of our coaching staff so well and one another so well. It’s just really a joy to see.”

Prosper Richland is also playing in its first state championship game as the school just opened Aug. 12, 2025. In their first season, the Lady Raiders made their way through the postseason with wins over Celina (13-2, 14-3), Kennedale (17-0, 13-0), Sulphur Springs (3-1, 2-1), Sanger (6-7, 16-12, 7-5) and Dumas (1-4, 4-2, 7-6).

“They have two different kids that they throw in the circle,” Murray said. “We saw them both on Saturday. They are very athletic. They have four slappers and they’re fast. They remind me a little bit of us. On Saturday, they were poised in big moments. I think it’s going to be a great matchup. I think our pitching staff is going to have to minimize what their slappers do, and our defense is going to have to defend against their speedy kids. Offensively, we’re going to have to work some counts and hit good pitches and try to square the ball up.”

“They’re definitely a really good team,” Brannen said. “Coach Murry said they’re pretty fast, so we have to play good defense. We’ve adjusted to pitchers pretty well, so just staying on top of that and coming back to the dugout and talking about what she’s throwing and what she’s doing. We’ve done great all playoff season against some really good teams, so we just have to keep that going.”

“Watching film this week, I’ve noticed they’re fast,” Malone said. “We have to hop on the bunts and make sure our defense is ready to go and work quick on our feet. Defense can win us ball games.”

Freshman Isabelle Lewis is 17-5 in the circle for Richland. She also bats .439 with seven home runs and 53 RBIs. Senior Sam Riley is 14-3 as a pitcher and has a team-high 10 home runs and 58 RBIs at the plate. Taiden Spain is hitting .509 with 30 stolen bases and freshman Justyce Malone is hitting .493 with 28 stolen bases. Berklee Shannon is a .417 hitter with a team-high 31 steals.

Brannen is 27-5 in the circle for the Lady Panthers and recently recorded her 800th career strikeout.

“Brooklyn works so hard,” junior catcher Lila Robertson said. “She’s such a perfectionist. She’s the best pitcher I’ve ever caught. I love Brooklyn so much. She’s such a great softball player.”

Sophomore Karter Swanson is hitting a team-high .473 for the Lady Panthers.

Team members for Bullard are junior outfielder Kaylan Mercer, senior outfielder Kenzi Roberts, freshman first baseman Madelyn Murry, sophomore pitcher/outfielder Kaitlyn Ramirez, senior pitcher/outfielder Brooklyn Brannen, senior shortstop/catcher Kirstin Malone, junior catcher Lila Robertson, senior first baseman/third baseman Denim Boles, freshman outfielder Olivia Patrick, freshman catcher Harlie Bailey, freshman outfielder/second baseman Adalynn Alexander, freshman second baseman/shortstop Peyton Walker, sophomore pitcher/outfielder Hudsen Walker, senior third baseman Emery Baker and sophomore second baseman/third baseman Karter Swanson. The head coach is Julie Murry with assistant coaches Brett Murry, Danielle Hudspeth and Callie Bailey. Bailey played on Bullard’s state semifinal team in 2022. Managers are Kadence Marshall and Brylee Hooker. Vanessa Docktor is the athletic trainer, and Lauren Dotson is the student trainer.

FAMILY CONNECTIONS

Murry said when she coached Henderson to the Class 3A state championship game in 2012, her daughter, Madalyn, had just turned 1 year old.

Now, Madalyn is on this Bullard team, and Murry’s husband, Brett, is on the coaching staff.

Kenzi Roberts has a twin brother, Bryce Roberts, on the Bullard baseball team that will be playing in the state semifinals against Corpus Christi Calallen at Buda Johnson High School in the Austin Area.

Adalynn Alexander is on the Bullard softball team, and her older brother, Luke Alexander, is on the Bullard baseball team.