By: Jason Stringer, Nixa Public Schools
In a successful October, the Eagles softball team competed in two tournaments and three conference games to conclude the 2025 regular season.
After a dominating 13-0 win over Glendale to start the month, Nixa competed in the Springfield Invitational, where the Eagles went 4-1, falling to Lee's Summit North and defeating Camdenton, Francis Howell, Rolla, and St. Teresa's Academy. The Eagles tallied more than 10 runs each game, three of which included 15-run outbursts.
The Eagles traveled to Ozark the following week and walked away victorious with a 9-5 win, extending their win streak to five entering the Rolla Invitational. Nixa split the four games in the tournament, winning over Owensville and Cuba, but fell to St. Elizabeth and St. Francis Borgia.
Nixa ended the regular season with a 10-inning thriller, prevailing over Neosho 5-4 with a walk-off sac-fly RBI by Miah Johnson. The Eagles finished the regular season with a 19-14 record, earning the No. 2 seed in Districts.
The first round of the playoffs included an 8-2 win over Glendale and a record-setting performance by Johnson. She made history by breaking the Missouri All-Time Single-Season Home Runs record in the first inning on a 2-run shot over the center-field fence, marking her 24th HR on the year. The homer broke Fr. Tolton's Madison Upterove's record of 23 set in 2023. Nixa's season ended in the semifinals as the Eagles exited to Republic, falling 10-2. One of those runs came from the bat of Johnson on a solo HR late in the ballgame, extending her record to 25. That record later got tied by Rock Bridge's Ava Bush in the final four games.
Following her breakout junior year, Johnson was rewarded with a plethora of postseason accolades, including National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Region 1(Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska) 2nd Team, Missouri High School Fastpitch Coaches Association (MHSFCA) Class 5 All-State, (MHSFCA) All-Class 5 Region 3 (MO Districts 5-6), All-Conference, and All-District. She ended the year hitting over .500 with 61 hits, including 25 HRs, seven doubles, and four triples, 58 RBIs, 47 runs scored, and nine stolen bases. On top of being the state and program record holder in HRs, she also became Nixa's all-time single-season leader in hits, RBIs, and runs with those season totals. Johnson had at least one hit in all but 25 games this season.
Fellow junior teammate Jordan Phillips ended the year on an 18-game hitting streak and was also tabbed with MHSFCA All-State and MHSFCA All-Class 5 Region 3 honors, in addition to All-District and All-Conference honors. She concluded by hitting over .500 with 56 hits, including nine HRs, 17 doubles, and one triple, and 52 runs, 37 RBIs, and 14 stolen bases.
It was junior Ossie Cooper's first year representing Nixa, and she was an offensive threat all season, as Cooper joined Johnson and Phillips on the MHSFCA All-Class 5 Region 3, All-District, and All-Conference teams. Cooper's season totals included 43 hits with seven HRs, 13 doubles, and 32 RBIs.
Grace West, Shelby Hicks, Abby Sloan, and Emma Dralle all had a well-rounded season and were selected to the All-Conference team.
West was sidelined the majority of the final third of the season with an injury, returning in the last game of the season, and tallied 33 hits with two HRs, seven RBIs, 29 runs, and 14 stolen bases. The 14 steals upped West's career total to 59, placing her as Nixa's all-time career leader.
Sloan totaled 32 hits, two HRs, 21 RBIs, 20 runs scored, six doubles, and six stolen bases. Dralle had 29 hits with three homers, 20 RBIS, 12 runs, and five doubles. Mylee Harper also went yard three times and had 18 runs scored, 16 hits, and eight stolen bases.
Hicks was Nixa's go-to in the circle, tossing nearly 135 innings and finishing with a record of 14-8. The right-hander allowed 88 earned runs while fanning 54 batters. At the plate offensively, she tallied 23 hits with 17 RBIs, 10 runs scored, nine doubles, eight stolen bases, and one triple.
Tenley Piwko and Kenedi Harper were Nixa's next options in the circle. Piwko mainly dealt in relief, recording one win and tossing over 25 innings, and allowed 33 earned runs with seven strikeouts. Harper appeared in eight games, throwing 16 innings with a record of 3-2. She allowed 25 earned runs and had a one-hit performance against Cuba.
Program Season Records:
Varsity: 20-15
JV: 10-3
Softball in the News:
Christian County Headliner
Ozark Sports Zone:
Click here to view the full softball schedule, box scores, and results.
