TSSAA softball state tournament predictions for 2024 championships (2024)

TheTSSAA softball state tournamentwill be played May 21-24 at Murfreesboro's StarPlex and McKnight complex, with the championship games at MTSU, as part of Spring Fling.

USA Today Network sports writers Toyloy Brown III (Knoxville News Sentinel), Harrison Campbell (Columbia Daily Herald), Austin Chastain (Jackson Sun), Cecil Joyce (Daily News Journal), Tom Kreager (The Tennessean), Tyler Palmateer (The Tennessean), George Robinson (The Tennessean) and Jacob Shames (Leaf Chronicle) gave their predictions on who will win championships in each of the six divisions (Division I Classes 1A-4A, Division II-A, AA).

Class 1A

Toyloy Brown III: Gordonsville 4, Jo Byrns 1. Gordonsville’s Kailey Plumlee, a Tennessee commit, will be dominant as a hitter and from the pitcher’s circle as the Lady Tigers repeat.

Harrison Campbell: Gordonsville 5, Jo Byrns 2. Gordonsville takes its second straight title over a Jo Byrns team appearing in its first state championship game.

Austin Chastain: Gordonsville 5, Hollow Rock-Bruceton 3. Bruceton has put together a strong season and is looking up with a second straight appearance at state. However, Kailey Plumlee will be too much to overcome.

Cecil Joyce: Gordonsville 2, Hollow Rock-Bruceton 1. Kailey Plumlee, Tigerettes take second title in a row in matchup of stingy pitching staffs.

Tom Kreager: Gordonsville 6, Jo Byrns 3. Tennessee commit Kailey Plumlee is the best player in Class 1A and among the elite in the state. She will dominate the pitcher's circle and at the plate this week.

Tyler Palmateer: Gordonsville 8, Hollow Rock-Bruceton 3: Nothing will stop the Tigerettes and Tennessee commit Kailey Plumlee from winning their second consecutive title.

George Robinson: Gordonsville 5, Hollow Rock-Bruceton 2: Tennessee commit Kailey Plumlee dominates the competition to return the Lady Tigers to a second straight state championship.

Jacob Shames: Gordonsville 3, Jo Byrns 0: Kailey Plumlee fires a no-hitter and hits a home run to lead the Tigerettes to a second straight title.

Class 2A

Brown: Alcoa 6, Westview 5. The Lady Tornadoes prove they can win high-scoring contests and pitcher’s duels on the way to their second state title.

Campbell: Alcoa 4, Huntingdon 3. Alcoa secures its second state title in a closely contested East vs. West Tennessee battle.

Chastain: Westview 7, Huntingdon 3. A clash of West Tennessee teams ends with dominance from Tennessee Lady Vols commit McCall Sims dominating in the circle and at the plate for Westview.

Joyce: Westview 5, Meigs County 4. Westview wins close finals, makes it two titles in a row after battling through tough half of bracket.

Kreager: Alcoa 3, Meigs County 2. Two East Tennessee powers meet with Alcoa pulling out a late run for its second state title in three years.

Palmateer: Alcoa 3, Meigs County 2: Lily Marsh’s arm will be a big weapon as Alcoa wins its second title.

Robinson: Alcoa 5, Huntingdon 4: Alcoa scores the go-ahead run in the seventh inning to close out its season with its first state title since 2022 and second overall.

Shames: Alcoa 7, Meigs County 3: The Tornadoes win their second championship in three years behind the hitting prowess of Halle Bailey, Adrianna King and Dylan Jablonski.

Class 3A

Brown: Lexington 9, Creek Wood 5. Lexington win a high-scoring affair for its second state title in three years.

Campbell: Gibbs 7, Lexington 4. Gibbs takes its 11th state title over 2022 state champion Lexington, after taking down a strong South Gibson team.

Chastain: South Gibson 7, Lexington 5. South Gibson's power throughout the lineup, including Cameryn Hays, Hallie Allen and Kylie Ballentine among others, fights off a strong Lexington pitching staff for the Hornets' first state title.

Joyce: South Gibson 7, Lexington 4. Cameryn Hays, Brooklyn Davidson power Hornets to program's first state title.

Kreager: Gibbs 4, Lexington 2. Gibbs brings home state title No. 11, but first since 2017.

Palmateer: Lexington 5, South Gibson 1: The Lady Tigers win their third title and second since 2022.

Robinson: Lexington 8, Gibbs 5: Lexington returns to the state championship for the second straight year and makes good on this appearance, knocking off Gibbs.

Shames: South Gibson 6, Lexington 5: The Hornets, who have won 22 of their last 25 games, remain hot in Murfreesboro to win their first title.

Class 4A

Brown: Green Hill 11, Walker Valley 5. Maliyah Wilkins will show off her slugging ability to help Green Hill capture back-to-back state champions.

Campbell: Green Hill 11, Nolensville 6. Green Hill and Avary Stockwell go back-to-back, defeating a Nolensville squad in its first state championship game.

Chastain: Green Hill 10, Nolensville 4. Avary Stockwell and company power their way to back-to-back titles for the Lady Hawks.

Joyce: Green Hill 9, Nolensville 6. Avary Stockwell and the Lady Hawks make it back-to-back in a slugfest over last season's third-place team.

Kreager: Green Hill 7, Nolensville 4. Avary Stockwell and Emily LeGrand lead a talented hitting lineup that can beat you with the long ball throughout the order.

Palmateer: Green Hill 7, Nolensville 3: Green Hill gets its second consecutive title behind a powerful offense and plenty of home runs.

Robinson: Green Hill 9, Arlington 8: In one of the toughest state tournament brackets in recent memory, Avary Stockwell and Emily LeGrand lead an explosive Lady Hawks offense to a second straight 4A title.

Shames: Green Hill 10, Nolensville 4: It's almost impossible to hold Avary Stockwell, Emily LeGrand and Maddie MacIntyre down for seven innings. The Hawks come alive late to repeat as state champions.

Division II-A

Brown: Silverdale 5, Lakeway Christian Academy 1. Silverdale rolls through the tournament behind pitcher Ella Cunningham, a Michigan State signee, who has a 0.65 ERA.

Campbell: Silverdale 6, Lakeway Christian 2. Silverdale defeats Lakeway Christian twice on its way to a second straight title.

Chastain: USJ 5, Silverdale 3. Haylen Ayers, Taylar Shands and Emerson Fair help lead the Lady Bruins to their third state title and first since 2012.

Joyce: Silverdale 7, Lakeway Christian 3. Silverdale repeats championship after cruising through bracket, beating Lakeway twice along the way.

Kreager: Lakeway Christian 7, Silverdale 2. Lakeway dethrones defending state champion Silverdale for the program's title.

Palmateer: Silverdale 9, USJ 4: Silverdale wins back-to-back championships and crosses the 50-win mark.

Robinson: Silverdale 7, Lakeway Christian 1: Of the 50 games Silverdale has played, entering the state tournament, opponents have been held to one or zero runs 37 times. That spells doom for the rest of the DII-A bracket.

Shames: Silverdale 4, USJ 0: Michigan State signee Ella Cunningham leads the Seahawks with a dominant two-way performance in her final high school game.

Division II-AA

Brown: Baylor 7, St. Benedict 3: Baylor cruises to a ninth consecutive state title (no tournament was held in 2020) as it remains loaded with talent.

Campbell: Baylor 8, St. Benedict 2. The favorite for a reason, Baylor wins its ninth straight state title, extending its record of most consecutive state championships.

Chastain: Baylor 8, St. Benedict 4. Baylor continues its dynasty run with another state title to make it nine in a row and 17 overall.

Joyce: Baylor 9, St. Benedict 2. The state's biggest dynasty continues as Baylor wins ninth title in a row, 12th in 13 years.

Kreager: Baylor 4, St. Benedict 0. Baylor wins its ninth consecutive state title and 17th overall in TSSAA history.

Palmateer: St. Benedict 8, Baylor 7: It's a shocker in Murfreesboro. St. Benedict upsets Baylor, snapping the Lady Raiders' streak of eight consecutive titles.

Robinson: Baylor 6, St. Benedict 2: The Lady Raiders make it nine straight, knocking off St. Benedict for the II-AA crown.

Shames: Baylor 5, St. Benedict 1: The Red Raiders hit three home runs en route to the 17th championship in program history and ninth straight.

Reach sports writer Tyler Palmateer at tpalmateer@tennessean.com and on the X platform, formerly Twitter, @tpalmateer83.