On May 26, 2012, Kelsey Nunley recorded the 416th and final strikeout of her senior season for Soddy-Daisy when she caught a Daniel Boone batter looking for strike three, with that pitch clinching the Class AAA softball championship.
It remains the most recent of the eight TSSAA state titles won by the program, led back then by the legendary Clifford Kirk, but the Lady Trojans appear to be on the doorstep of returning to statewide prominence.
More than a decade later and now known as Nunley-Moore, she stands in the third-base box, fills out the lineup card and calls pitches from the dugout for her alma mater, having gone from ace to head coach. And once again, Soddy-Daisy may have the best pitcher in the area as junior Reagan Rowan has excelled against the best competition that greater Chattanooga has to offer.
Rowan broke out in the circle for the Lady Trojans last year, when they won 35 games, advancing to the Spring Fling in Murfreesboro for the first time since 2014. She shared ace duties with senior Taylor Lloyd in 2022, but Rowan’s right arm has been called on in every crucial game this spring.
“The biggest key for me this season has been taking care of my body,” Rowan said. “That is the big thing. Being the go-to ace is more pressure, but I feel like I do well when I am in those situations. I know I can’t do it myself, so I go out there and let my defense work behind me.”
In many of Rowan’s starts, her defense has been able to sit back and watch the pitcher work her magic. She went right after two loaded lineups in Baylor and Cleveland, striking out 15 batters in each victory. Rowan also blanked the state’s highest-scoring team in a 4-0 win at Silverdale Baptist Academy in which she did not allow a walk and had 11 strikeouts.
For the season, she is 19-2 overall with 215 strikeouts in 129 1/3 innings with a 1.73 ERA. Rowan’s ninth shutout of the year came Tuesday night, when the Lady Trojans beat East Hamilton 10-0 and won their second straight District 6-3A championship.
“Reagan is so tough,” said Nunley-Moore, who followed her days at Soddy-Daisy and in the Southeastern Conference with Kentucky by competing in professional softball. “Over the summer she really worked hard, and her curve and riseball got significantly better. For her to be able to go up in the zone when ahead in the count has made a big difference. It was great to see her throw some changeups the other night and smile after getting that pitch to work for her, too.”
Soddy-Daisy is 27-5-1 overall heading into this week’s Region 3-3A tournament and ranked fourth in its classification — behind Gibbs, Knoxville Halls and Greenbrier — by MaxPreps.com, and the senior leadership of shortstop Tatum Massengale, first baseman Jenna Sims and catcher Adasyn Wilkey has also been a big part of the success.
“Working with Kelsey has really helped me a lot and all of us,” Rowan said. “She was one of the best pitchers in the country in college and is in the University of Kentucky Hall of Fame. She knows what she is doing. So we all really trust her and are glad she is our coach.”
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.