Blue Springs South blanks Grain Valley in district championship

Avery Dunbar didn’t need much run support Monday afternoon, but her Blue Springs South teammates provided her with two home runs en route to a district championship. 

Those two bombs over the tall outfield fence at Blue Springs High School were all the Jaguars needed to win their first district title since 2023. Dunbar and the Jaguars shut out previously unbeaten Grain Valley in the Class 5 District 7 title game, winning 2-0.

“It’s amazing. It’a awesome,” Blue Springs South coach Kristina Williams said. “We kept telling the kids they were prepared for this and they were ready for this. They trusted their training and they trusted everything that we've been doing all season long. They came out here today with a ton of confidence and took down a really, great team.”

Grain Valley (29-1) hadn’t been shut out since last year’s third-place game at the state tournament. The Eagles came into the contest averaging more than nine runs per game this season.

Dunbar and her defense allowed only a handful of hits in the contest. She kept the Eagles off balance, forcing the Eagles into popups and groundouts for much of the game.

“She was on fire today,” Williams said. “With Avery, she’s sneaky. She’s got a lot of movement and she can do a lot of things. These last couple of week’s, she’s been pitching really well. To see her get that today and keep the lineup off the board was definitely a huge accomplishment for her, but also our team. She will also tell you her defense had her back today.”

Williams continued, explaining why Dunbar is difficult to hit when she’s in the circle.

“She spins it well and she changes speed well,” Williams said. “She’s got a little bit of everything, so you just never know what you’re going to get. She found it today and I’m really proud of her.”

• 

• 

• 

Offensively, Blue Springs South blasted a pair of solo home runs off of Grain Valley senior Molly Jones. The first came in the top of the third inning when senior Riley Hollister hit one over the fence to give her squad an early 1-0 lead.

“To get that lead helped our confidence a lot,” Williams said. “Like I said, the girls came in with a ton of confidence, so to get that lead and get that first run really helped them settle in for the rest of the game.”

Clinging to a 1-0 lead, the Jags’ offense provided a much-needed insurance run. Senior Sydney Coffey crushed a pitch over the center field fence, ending a long at-bat where she fouled off several pitches. 

“The bottom of the seventh goes completely different if we’re only up by one,” Williams said. “That was huge. She had a phenomenal at-bat. I think she was seven or eight pitches deep when she hit it.”

In the bottom of the seventh, Grain Valley senior Abe Scott-Carlton reached first on a hit to keep the Eagles’ chances available. Senior Myla Johnson reached first on a walk and Scott-Carlton moved to third on a passed ball and groundout.

With the Eagles threatening with the tying runners on the corners and the winning run at the plate, Dunbar battled in the circle and forced a game-ending groundout right back to her. She tossed the ball toward first base and the Jags’ celebration ensued on the field.

Blue Springs South will now face Liberty at 11 a.m. Saturday in Liberty in the Class 5 state quarterfinals. Liberty beat the Jaguars, 5-3, at home on Sept. 30. Now, they will play again to earn a state semifinal berth.

“We earned another day. That’s what we say,” Williams said.