Softball Coach of the Year: James Wood's Patrick Gibson

In 2023, the James Wood softball team made program history by advancing to the Class 4 state tournament for the first time.

And despite losing multiple starters from that squad and facing a new playoff format in Region 4D, the Colonels were right back in the state quarterfinals again.

They did it in dramatic fashion, rallying from a 3-1 deficit against rival Sherando, using a two-run single with two outs in the bottom of the seventh to edge the Warriors 4-3 in the regional semifinals.

The Colonels (19-5) dropped their last two games against the two teams that battled for the state title, falling 5-1 to Jefferson Forest in the regional title game and 7-1 to Woodgrove in the state quarterfinals. Woodgrove would go on to top Jefferson Forest 7-0 in the title game.

For his part in leading a young Colonels team to another state berth, Patrick Gibson is The Winchester Star’s Softball Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season.

Q: What were your expectations for the season and were they met?

Gibson: Anything less than states was a disappointment and they achieved it and got it done. We finished first in the district and that was one of the goals. The only goal we didn’t meet was winning the regional championship. That would have put us in a better spot. Obviously, we get beat by the state champion in the first round of the state quarterfinals. [Region 4D champion] Jefferson Forest beats us and they make it to the state title game. If we win that regional championship, maybe we make it to the state title game which is what we want to do. We’re making it to the states, but now we need to take the next step and start winning some games. Totally, the expectations were met. They did everything and more than I asked of them and made the states two years in a row and won the district. I couldn’t be more pleased. … This isn’t possible without [assistant coaches] Chris Green and Steve Hicks. They put so much time into their craft. They are detailed oriented. As a staff, we teach every phase of the game and we make a great team. Without them, it’s not possible.

Q: What were some of the qualities about this team that stood out?

Gibson: First of all, our team chemistry was great. There was no drama this season and zero complaints which was great. They just got along. They hung around off the field. The personalities with Cadence, Sophia and Kati Brannon just kept everything loose. They jelled as a team really quickly and they just loved each other and they played for each other.

Q: Were there any adjustments you made during the season that you thought paid off?

Gibson: I wouldn’t say really adjustments. I’ll say that that the kids came every single day and allowed us to coach them hard, especially the freshmen. We were really hard on them in the beginning and they never once backpedaled on that. They embraced that. We really pounded our infield, because we had a young infield, … on fundamentals. We knew that if we could play good defense and stay out of big innings that we had the hitting and pitching to win games.

Q: Were there any players who surprised you at all?

Gibson: I guess you could say Kati Brannon and Sophia Gerald, just being freshmen and they way they performed under pressure. They acted like they had been there before. I wouldn’t say we were really surprised because we knew what they were capable of. It was just the way they performed in big moments I guess. You can throw in Aliza Judd and the great job she did behind the plate. Brynnen Williams did a great job at shortstop and actually broke Cadence’s single season batting average record by batting .541 this year. The old record was .536. Her breaking that was big. Molly Maynard at third base, there’s another example of us really pounding her in the infield and she got a ton better. She had a great game against Woodgrove in the state quarterfinals. Aubrey Nail played a great outfield. I could just go down the list. It was just kids stepping up and being coached hard.

Q: Was there a game that defined your season?

Gibson: Yes, the Liberty loss (7-4 on April 16). Sometimes it’s a win that propels you, but this time it was a loss. When we lost that game we were devastated. We knew we had to get back to work. We used it though and we let them know that anybody can beat you on any given day if you don’t show up. We talked about that a lot in practice. We went out the next game against Heritage at Heritage and we scored 10 runs in the first inning. I could tell by that effort [a 19-3 win], that we were going to use [the Liberty loss] to propel us to what we did.

Q: You lose some excellent players, but return several young starters. What are your thoughts about next season?

Gibson: We’re losing a lot. We’re losing a lot of that leadership. We have a good core coming back. I only know of a couple of freshmen that are coming up, so I can’t wait to get to September and start getting to know them a little bit more and figure out more of what we have. We do have Kayleigh Harden (who missed this season with an injury) coming back. I talked to her and her rehab is going great. She’s set to start softball activities in September, so getting her back will be big. We’re going to have to coach them up and see what we get coming up as freshmen.

— Compiled by Walt Moody