The DeKalb County Lady Tigers softball team will play in their first state tournament since 2016.
DeKalb will face McNairy Central in Murfreesboro Tuesday afternoon. McNairy Central stands 24-8 on the season. DeKalb County Softball Head Coach Ethan Duke said his team has shown a lot of fighting spirit.
“Most of the time, when it comes down to the end of the year, teams take one or two directions,” Duke said. “Either they’re ready for it to be over with or they see that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel but the job’s still not complete yet. And for this team, that’s their mentality.”
DeKalb defeated Lenoir City in the sectional round to clinch a trip to the state. The Lady Tigers will enter the state tournament having won their last 11 games. Duke said the team knows how tired they are.
“They know that they also want to complete the mission that we set out on at the beginning of the season,” Duke said. “That was not just get to the state tournament, but it was to advance into it.”
Duke said the girls have locked in and added grit throughout the season.
“We are ready for Tuesday to get here and continuously advance into the state tournament.” Duke said.
DeKalb had previously been to three consecutive state tournaments from 2014-2016. The Lady Tigers are 5-16 all time in state tournament play.
