Jonesboro softball sweeps Ranger, advances toward state three-peat

Jonesboro kept alive a chance at something Coryell County softball has not seen often: a third straight Class 1A state championship. The Lady Eagles swept Ranger 17-1 and 17-2 in Weatherford on April 23, piling up runs and holding the Bulldogs in check to move another step closer to history.

The sweep showed how far the Jonesboro program has come. Zaylie Tanner, Kylee Gould, Landree Deats, Ally Thorman, Adalyna Andrade, Landri McFarlin, Lynlee Deats, Adison Lopez and Ryli Bryson were all part of the offensive surge as Jonesboro controlled both games from the first inning on. Ranger entered the series at 1-9, and the Lady Eagles gave it little chance to settle in.

That depth has been the signature of Jonesboro’s recent run. The Lady Eagles won the 2024 UIL Class 1A state title by beating Slocum 10-0 in six innings and 3-1 in the state final, then repeated as state champions in 2025 with another title game win over Neches. The coaching continuity behind those seasons has also mattered, with Amanda LeCroy and Cody LeCroy guiding the 2024 team and James Turner taking over in 2025 with assistants Eddie Gallegos and Matt Dossey. The names have changed some, but the standard has not.

Abbott was next on the bracket, with Strawn or Blum waiting if Jonesboro kept advancing. That is the difference now for the Lady Eagles: not proving they belong, but clearing the final hurdles between a strong playoff run and a three-peat few Texas programs can claim.

Jonesboro was not the only Coryell County team making noise deep in the spring postseason. Oglesby’s baseball team opened the Class 1A playoffs after winning a third straight District 14A championship, beating Jonesboro 12-7 on April 22, 2025 and carrying a No. 14 ranking in Class 1A. The Tigers then took care of Bluff Dale 6-2 and 13-0 at Whitney High School, a reminder that small-school programs from this part of Central Texas were producing outsized postseason results on both diamonds.