2024 Softball State Tournament: Class AAAA Championship

Surprise entrants in the Minnesota State High School League’s Class AAAA Softball Championship Game proved worthy of their place on Friday, June 7 at Caswell Park in North Mankato. New Prague, the No. 4 seed to open the tournament earned a berth by upsetting top-seeded Rosemount, the defending big-school champion, in Thursday’s semifinals. In the lower bracket, No. 3-seeded Rogers carved a path by ousting No. 2 Forest Lake in a wild, wind-crazed semifinal. 

With the spirit of making history flowing from each dugout, the Class AAAA field has a new champion to add to the rich tradition of the League’s Softball State Tournament. 

Rogers meshed timely hitting, solid defense and effective pitching to create a 3-0 victory over New Prague. The Royals (22-3) scored single runs in the second, fifth and seventh innings, respectively, and made them stand in capturing the school’s first softball state championship in two trips to the tournament. The other state tournament trip came in 2005. 

Senior catcher Kamryn Messer anchored the milestone victory by going 2 for 4 with a run batted in. She had an RBI single in the fifth inning that gave the Royals a 2-0 lead that provided some separation. Later, ninth-grade designated player Avery Freeberg had an RBI double in the seventh. 

Eighth-grade pitcher AnnaBelle Waldoch scattered three hits and struck out seven. She is the second player in her household to win a softball state title. Her mother is Angie (Recknor) Waldoch, a standout left-handed pitcher who played at Hopkins High School in the late 1990’s. She then was an All-American pitcher at the University of Minnesota. In the second inning, Waldoch walked the bases loaded but got out of the jam with three strikeouts. 

Senior pitcher Jordyn Marsh had eight strikeouts for New Prague (21-4). The Trojans were also seeking their first championship in three trips to the state tournament. 

Third place

Rosemount bounced back from its loss in the semifinals to record a 3-2 victory over Forest Lake. Those two squads were projected to be the finalists for the fourth consecutive season. Senior first baseman Morgan Honeycutt hit a solo home run in the fifth inning that gave the Irish (23-5) a three-run advantage. Forest Lake (19-6) answered with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, respectively.