Black Squad Prevails in 2018 OKC Challenge

November 16, 2018 | Softball

After a competitive final day, the Black Squad wins in a tiebreaker

After a highly-competitive final day, the Black Squad claimed the 2018 edition of the University of Louisville softball team's Oklahoma City Challenge.

"I loved watching the team compete and battle it out with each other in the OKC Challenge," said UofL head coach Holly Aprile. "As a team, we showed a ton of heart, determination, and fight. The tasks in the challenge helped build our character, accountability, resilience, discipline, and overall team strength both mentally and physically. As always, we are preparing to win championships…ACC, Regional, Super Regional, and NCAA Championships. The OKC Challenge is a part of our steps toward those ultimate goals."

Entering the final day of the annual competition, the Red Squad held a 2-1 lead, but a strong push by the Black Squad evened the score at 2-2 after a 100-mile bike race. A tiebreaker saw Megan Hensley prevail in a wall-sit to hand her team the title.

About the Oklahoma City Challenge
In its eighth year, the annual Oklahoma City Challenge is part of Louisville softball's quest to reach the Women's College World Series which is set in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Sophomore Danielle Watson was selected as captain of the Black Squad while senior Sidney Melton was named the Red Squad captain.

Black Squad: Danielle Watson (captain), Megan Hensley, Taylor Roby, Madison Ciaccio, Maddy Newman, Madison Cousineau, Rebecca Chung, Riley Schindler, Erin Wilbur, Eden Mayo

Red Squad: Sidney Melton (captain), Celene Funke, Charley Butler, Cassady Greenwood, Caitlin Ferguson, Jordyn Wolfe, Paige Schindler, Kyra Snyder, Darrianne Hale

About Louisville Softball
UofL finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 33-20. Back from that team are 14 letterwinners and six starters as well as five pitchers. Louisville also welcomes the addition of five freshmen to the 2019 roster.

Among the returners are National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Region selections junior Caitlin Ferguson (Versailles, Ky.) and senior Megan Hensley (Ashland, Ky.) as well as all-ACC honoree senior Sidney Melton (Columbus, Ohio) and sophomore Maddy Newman (Osceola, Ind.) who earned all-ACC freshman team honors last year. Junior Celene Funke (Carmel, Ind.) also returns after leading the team with a .355 batting average along with sophomore Danielle Watson (Osceola, Ind.) who posted 14 wins in the circle during her freshman campaign.

The Aprile Era
This marks the first season under new head coach Holly Aprile. The 2018 ACC Coach of the Year spent 10 seasons (2009-18) as Pittsburgh's head coach and five years (2004-08) as an assistant. In 2018, she earned ACC Coach of the Year honors after leading the Panthers to the 2018 ACC Coastal Division title and a runner-up finish in the conference tournament.