Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com
By Ray Hamill — At the outset of the season, it seemed unlikely the Eureka Loggers would challenge for a Charles Lakin Tournament championship this year.
And last week, it seemed downright impossible.
But that’s the beauty of sports.
On Friday evening, the Loggers capped a breakthrough season by beating Fortuna 14-7 in the Lakin tournament final at the Arcata Sports Complex, completing one of the most remarkable turnarounds in recent H-DNL softball history.
This is a Loggers program that was winless in 2025 and had not even qualified for the league postseason tournament since they last lifted the coveted trophy in 2023.
And after placing fourth in a very competitive Big 5, the Eureka girls were left out of the original tournament field.
But thanks to a scheduling conflict with a required school activity for Del Norte, the Warriors were unable to participate in this year’s tournament and the Loggers took their place.
And the rest, as they say, is now history.
The victory also secured a piece of history for the Loggers, who now have four all-time Lakin tournament championships, tying Fortuna for most ever.
“I’m really proud of the effort they put into this year,” Eureka head coach Bob Secor said of his players. “And I think they’re seeing that hard work paying off.”
No one can deny the Loggers deserved this.
After coming from behind to beat Hoopa in their tournament opener on Tuesday, the Eureka girls posted back-to-back wins over the Big 5 champs (McKinleyville) and the defending Lakin champs (Fortuna) on their way to lifting the trophy.
And for the second straight day on Friday, they came ready to go, scoring multiple runs in each of the first three innings and opening up what proved to be an insurmountable 9-1 lead going into the bottom of the third.
That was the game plan, and the players executed it to near perfection.
“We came out ready and that’s exactly what we told them they needed to do,” Secor said.
The loss was obviously a disappointing one for the Fortuna girls, who finished the H-DNL season as runners-up in both the Big 5 and Lakin tournament.
The Huskies had a good day at the plate, but five errors on defense and a disappointing start in the circle proved costly against a Eureka team that was clearly on a roll.
“In games like that, you have to play better overall,” Fortuna head coach Eric Helms said. “Defensively we didn’t really show up to play, and our starting pitching was a little lacking today.”
Offensively, there were several standouts for both teams, including the always reliable Eureka duo of Bailey Brown and Macy Secor, each of whom have enjoyed outstanding senior campaigns.
Eureka pitcher Mackenzie Wolff had another big day in the circle, capping an outstanding week for the junior standout.
Wolff threw her third complete game in four days, and while she gave up 11 hits to a deep and dangerous Fortuna lineup, she only allowed two walks and struck out five.
“Our defensive all-around (was impressive), and obviously our pitcher,” Bob Secor said, “She is a workhorse and she goes in there and always throws a good game.”
Macy Secor, who has been one of the most reliable and consistent bats in the H-DNL all spring, finished 3-for-4 with a walk, two RBIs and four runs, while Brown, who has been equally influential for the team this year, was 2-for-4 with two doubles, two RBIs, two runs and a sac fly.
Tiffany Harris, meanwhile, provided the offensive highlight of the day, finishing 2-for-5 and hitting a three-run home run in the top of the seventh to widen the gap to seven and all but end the game as a contest.
It was her first home run of the season and she also had a double.
Megan Secor (1-for-2 with three walks and two runs), Ella Moxon (1-for-4 with a run), Jaycee Childress (1-for-5 with an RBI) and Lola Distefano (1-for-5) each also had a hit in the win, while leadoff hitter Violla Kingsang reached base three times on a walk and two hit-by-pitches on her way to scoring three runs.
Kylee Secor also had a walk for the Loggers, who improved to 12-12 on the season.
“You have to tip your hat to Mackenzie Wolff, Bailey Brown, Tiffany Harris and the Secor sisters, because they really stepped up their game today,” Helms said. “The whole Eureka team played almost flawless today.”
There were also several standouts at the plate for the Huskies, including junior Evalynn Little, who continued her remarkable season with another huge day.
Little did everything she could to help her team succeed, finishing 3-for-4 with two doubles, as did teammate Hailee Thompson, who was 2-for-3 with two RBIs.
Freshman Mia Tiedeman (2-for-4) and sophomore Sophia Castillo (1-for-4 with two RBIs) each also hit successfully for the Huskies, while freshman Kaylee Castillo had the at-bat of the game in the bottom of the sixth, getting a base hit on a 14-pitch at-bat and showcasing tremendous fighting spirit.
Isabel Sanchez got the start in the circle for the Huskies, but threw just 1.1 innings after giving up seven earned runs on five hits and three walks.
Kaylee Castillo pitched the final 5.2 innings in relief.
Neither Fortuna pitcher, however, got much help from their defense, compared to an errorless day for the Loggers.
Both schools will now turn their attention to the upcoming North Coast Section playoffs, which get under way next week, with the seeds and brackets set to be announced on Sunday.
But for a couple of days at least, the Loggers will enjoy this one.
“I feel like, starting with this year, we’ve really planted a really good seed, and moving forward I think we’ll build on that,” Bob Secor said.
The Huskies are now 21-5.
