Chaffee softball hammers Elsberry, claims return ticket to final four in fiery duel

Going on the road for a chance at a second consecutive final-four berth, Chaffee lived up to the hype as it downed Elsberry 3-2 to claim a Class 2 quarterfinal contest and advance to the state semifinals.

It took a low-scoring victory to send Chaffee (25-6) back to its fourth final four in the past decade, but with an excellent outing from Carlyanne Cossou, it felt like there was never a doubt.

Despite Elsberry’s (25-10) best efforts, putting together a rally in the fourth but never enough to get it back within the tie or lead, the Red Devils put away the quarterfinal for their eighth consecutive victory.

“All year long, we’ve just preached, Pitching and defense, and it was nice to get on the board early to help ease our emotions a little bit and relieve some pressure,” veteran Chaffee coach Brian Horrell said.

In those four final-four appearances, one being this year, the Red Devils finished in fourth place, third place and second place as the gold has eluded the Red Devils.

As Jersie Lynn put away the final out at first base, Chaffee erupted to celebrate a second consecutive trip to the state championships for the first time in school history (a la the Chaffee baseball team five months ago).

There aren’t many names more heralded in Chaffee athletics than the Horrells, with Brian’s Saturday victory at the helm of the softball team making for his seventh trip to the final four as a Chaffee head coach.

After leaving his son, Aaron Horrell, in charge of the baseball team two years back, the family affair has blossomed into a beautiful partnership that’s put both the softball and baseball teams in paramount positions.

“I’ve taught and coached at Chaffee for probably 35 years in some capacity,” Brian Horrell began, fighting off his emotions.

“It’s hard to win that quarterfinal game because when you get the quarterfinals, there’s only great teams left. To come out on top lately in both baseball and softball, it’s just a tremendous feeling for our kids and our community.

Chaffee got the offense going early as Reese Van Pelt singled before advancing to third on an error, bringing home the first run of the game.

Soon after, Lynn’s fielder’s choice brought home Van Pelt to make it 2-0 Chaffee in the first inning, allowing the visitors to seize early momentum against a loud Elsberry crowd.

The very next inning, Van Pelt stayed hot with another single, this time scoring Cossou to extend the Devils’ lead to 3-0.

Elsberry finally pitched a scoreless inning in the third, but by the end of three, Chaffee’s three-run lead looked sound as it continued to place runners in scoring position even without adding on.

In the fourth, however, the Indians finally found life as a ball got caught up in the sun. Anna Talbot turned a soft fly ball into a triple and came around to score on the next pitch to trim the deficit to 3-2.

From there on, both teams quickly lost their offensive edge, going blow-for-blow defensively as the one-run game continued to heat up.

With less than 70 minutes elapsed since the first pitch, Elsberry came down to its last three outs against Cossou in a do-or-die spot, with the Indians eyeing their first program final-four appearance.

Katy Talbot, down to the last out, got a bloop single into shallow center field, but she never got past first base as shortstop Bailey Robertson threw to first for the final out to send Chaffee back to Springfield.

Cossou came to play, so to say, as the sophomore finished her second quarterfinal appearance in as many years as a high schooler with a remarkable statline.

Her night: three hits allowed, zero walks, seven strikeouts and just one earned run. Not to mention, she added two hits on offense, too.

Since she arrived on campus, Cossou has been the go-to pitcher who’s helped to guide Chaffee to two state final fours in as many years.

Before her, Reese Van Pelt threw every game for her freshman and sophomore years, but Cossou helped relieve Van Pelt as she transitioned into an offensive leader for the Red Devils.

Now a senior, and one of the biggest vocal leaders among Chaffee’s 2024 ballclub, Van Pelt was nothing but smiles as she walked back through Cossou’s day in the circle.

“She is amazing,” Van Pelt said, beaming about Cossou. “I told Carly, ‘You’re the best there ever was.’
Like, ‘I don’t care who else is here, you’re the best there ever was.’

“She’s so young, and she’s so amazing, and I’m so proud of her.”

Those smiles of celebration will stick around for quite a while, but there’s plenty to keep the Red Devils on their feet for the near future.

Just six days remain until the start of the state final four in Springfield. The Red Devils are set to face off against the Mid-Buchanan Dragons, now 32-4 after knocking off Carrollton in the state quarterfinals Saturday.

They’ll reset, refocus and begin preparation to set out for a daunting Friday matchup on the other side of the Show-Me State.

“A lot of times, coaches will say, ‘Celebrate ’til you go to bed,’ but we’re gonna celebrate it all the way to Monday,” Brian Horrell said.

“They’re throwing together a spaghetti dinner on a Wednesday night, so we’ll try to help raise some funds so these girls can have everything they want. Last year, there was nothing that they wanted that they didn’t get through their tremendous support because our community is so proud of all of our sports at Chaffee.”