Holy Family Tigers Claim State Softball Title, a Triumph of Teamwork and Tenacity
- Denver Catholic Staff
- Oct 28
- 3 min read
At Aurora Sports Park on a brisk October afternoon, Broomfield's Holy Family High School softball team proved that grit, faith and teamwork can overcome even the toughest odds. With a stunning 7–4 comeback win over top-seeded Windsor, the Tigers captured their first Class 4A state championship since 2021 — a victory years in the making.
The path to the title was anything but easy. After clinching their state berth with an extra-innings win over Palmer Ridge, senior pitcher Emmaline Humphreys sat quietly in the outfield beside her coach, Moriah Nguyen, both physically and emotionally spent. The Stanford-bound ace had carried her team through countless innings all season.
Nguyen knew she needed to rely on more than just her star pitcher.
“We’ve talked about it all season, that Emmaline can’t be the one to keep us in games,” said Nguyen. “We have to score runs, we have to hit, and it felt they stepped up for her and for each other, and they did the dang thing.”
A Comeback for the Record Books
Nguyen handed the ball to sophomore Carley Tooley to start the championship game. Windsor’s bats were hot early, scoring three runs in the first inning, capped by a two-run home run from senior Kylie Smith. But when Nguyen turned back to Humphreys, the tide began to shift.
The senior struck out 13 batters in 6.2 innings, allowing just one unearned run — shutting down the Wizards and giving her teammates the chance to rally.
“I think it gave me a bit of second wind that Tooley could start,” said Humphreys, who struck out 30 batters in her last 13.2 innings against Windsor. “That was totally a team effort for us to be able to pull that off because I totally felt like I was running on empty.”
Holy Family’s offense came alive in the fourth inning. After a leadoff error by Windsor opened the door, the Tigers pounced — stringing together hit after hit. Graci Baker drove in a run with a single to right, Kaiya Devereux added an RBI single of her own, and Jaelyn Sandoval crushed a two-run double to give the Tigers the lead.
“You could definitely tell by the balls [the Windsor pitcher] was throwing that there was a lack of focus,” Sandoval said. “We’ve played softball our whole lives, and this was just one more softball game, and it was good to feel this success.”
By the end of the inning, Holy Family had scored six runs and never looked back. Humphreys dominated the rest of the way, allowing just one baserunner in the final innings.
“I was almost euphoric in a weird way, because I knew I couldn’t control it,” Humphreys said. “If we were down 10–0 or 1–0, it doesn’t make a difference, you still have to score to win. So I just tried to keep it as close as possible in case and we did what we did.”
A Win Beyond the Scoreboard
As the final out landed safely in a Tiger’s glove, the team erupted — not just in celebration, but in gratitude. Their championship was more than a scoreboard victory; it was the fruit of unity, sacrifice and belief in one another.
For Nguyen, who captured a title in her first season as head coach, it was the realization of a year’s worth of effort and trust.
“Winning is incredibly hard,” she said. “Obviously, having a great pitcher is awesome, but the rest of our team is pretty young, and those girls stepped up and did what they were supposed to do in big moments. Simply awesome.”
The win also marked a powerful reminder of the school’s mission to form the whole person — body, mind and spirit. At Holy Family, athletic achievement is never separated from virtue. The Tigers’ victory reflected perseverance, humility and joy — values at the heart of Catholic education.
The moment served as both a celebration and a thanksgiving — for strength, for teamwork and for the grace to meet every challenge with courage.
With their first state title since 2021, the Holy Family Tigers reminded their community that true victory lies not only in trophies but in the character formed along the way.
