ALL-AREA SOFTBALL: Princeton's Braswell named coach-of-the-year

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on June 27, 2016 1:48 PM

• Print
• Email

PRINCETON -- One goal.

One team.

Princeton head coach softball coach Terry Braswell preached those two reminders every day in practice. He could see the players' potential and knew that hard work, along with determination, could lead to a record-setting year.

Braswell wasn't wrong.

His expectations unfolded on a humid Friday evening and a sweltering Saturday afternoon in Raleigh. The prospect of returning home as a state runner-up didn't sit well Braswell.

The players certainly didn't care for that distinction.

"I just reminded them that we had one goal and I made them stick to it," Braswell said. "This crowd, they really pushed each other as well as they pushed themselves. As a coach, you have to push them -- but not as hard when they have the mentality to get there.

"You just have to keep reminding them."

Princeton stormed back from an opening-game loss to North Stanly in the best-of-three series. The Bulldogs defeated the Comets twice the next day and returned home with the 2016 N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 1-A state championship in tow.

It's just the second state title won by a girls' team in PHS athletics history.

"It still seems unreal," said Braswell, who has been selected as the 2016 News-Argus All-Area Softball Coach-of-the-Year.

Braswell guided the Bulldogs to a regular-season share of the Carolina 1-A Conference championship -- the 10th straight in program history. That was the team's primary goal, especially for its three seniors -- Hailey Wood, Taylor Carroll and Kelsey Peedin to go out with four consecutive league crowns.

One goal remained.

The top-seeded team in the eastern half of the draw, Princeton (24-3 overall) launched its championship run with an 18-0 shellacking of Northampton County. The Bulldogs pulled off consecutive one-run decisions against East Columbus and East Carteret, respectively.

Princeton blanked Perquimans in the eastern semifinals, which set up a meeting against Carolina co-champ North Duplin in the regional finals. The Bulldogs eliminated the Rebels in three games and did the same to North Stanly nearly a week later.

"(I said) to meet that goal (of a state title) we had to play good every game," said Braswell, who returned seven starters from a year ago. "We had a good defense and most of the time we had good bats. Of course, that changed when we ran into good pitching and that should happen."

The Bulldogs set an eye-popping single-school records this past spring -- total wins (24), team batting average (.353), total runs scored (250), RBI (182), triples (17), home runs (15), walks (123), on-base percentage (.451), slugging percentage (.540) and on-base slugging percentage (.992).

Braswell improved to 106-35 as head coach since 2009.

Like his players, the state title may not sink in until he receives his ring. Even then, part of it belongs to those previous teams who gave their heart soul to the program, and set the foundation for this year's team.

"To see our group of seniors walk away with a state title, it was great. They worked really hard and got it," Braswell said.

And never lost sight of their goal.