Hackett senior Morgan Coryell after another state softball championship

Morgan Coryell still has vivid memories of being part of Hackett’s first state championship softball squad last season.

“Being a part of such a historical win for Hackett was truly an honor,” Coryell said. “One thing I remember most about last year’s state title win was how well we played as a team. Our bats got hot, and we were so in the moment we didn’t realize we had won via run rule.”

Coryell and her Lady Hornet teammates hope to replicate that winning feeling as Hackett – which won Class 3A last season – goes for back-to-back titles against Riverside in the Class 2A title game Saturday (May 24) at 10 a.m. in Conway at the University of Central Arkansas.

“From (the first) practice, our whole team has worked our butts off for one thing, and that is to get back to UCA,” said Coryell, a senior infielder. “From practice to game, our mission has been winning another state title. We cannot stress enough the things we do outside of what everyone sees; we have had one goal.”

Coryell – who transferred to Hackett from Greenwood prior to her junior season – plays both shortstop and third base. Though shortstop is her primary role, she has been the starting third baseman for the Lady Hornets since arriving to her new team. She’s also the team’s table-setter on offense, batting in the lead-off position.

Coryell also quickly formed bonds with her new team upon arriving at Hackett.

“The Hackett Lady Hornets truly is a special team, but what sets us apart is our family-like bond,” she said. “No matter the circumstances of a situation, what’s going on outside the game, once we step on that field, we are family. We truly have a drive to work together and win as a team. One thing our coaches stress is there is no ‘I’ in team.”

While Hackett is a defending state champion, its title-game opponent also knows what it takes to win at this juncture. Riverside won the 2A title two years ago and played for the 3A championship last season before falling to Mansfield.

And should Hackett win again, it adds icing to the cake for Coryell’s senior year. Last fall, she was part of the Lady Hornets’ state championship squad in volleyball – a sport Coryell had never played until her senior season.

“Last year, (volleyball coach Bridget) Freeman convinced me to play volleyball, and it was genuinely one of the best experiences I could have asked for,” Coryell said. “We got another state title, and I made tons of new relationships I never knew I needed.

Coryell also succeeds in the classroom, making all A’s as a senior, including three online college classes, and carrying a 4.0 grade-point average. Along with her athletics and academics, Coryell enjoys making graphics.

“My junior year, I took a digital marketing class where we made all kinds of graphics, including game day posts,” Coryell said. “The majority of the game days you see posted on Hackett’s Facebook and such were made by me and (teammate) Ava Bartmier.”

Coryell – who confirmed she’s a distant relative of legendary pro football coach Don Coryell – will continue her softball career next season, having signed to play at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Okla. While she wants nothing more than another state title, Morgan Coryell also realizes regardless of Saturday’s outcome, it will be difficult for her knowing it’s her final game as a Lady Hornet.

“It is bittersweet to think I only have one more high school game, but I know for sure I’ll make it the best one yet,” Coryell said. “It’s hard having to say goodbye to something that has been such a norm for so long, but life goes on, and I just have to keep reminding myself it’s not an ending, but a beginning for all the things that are left.”