There have been plenty of heroes for Hahnville throughout this softball season.
And there were plenty of them on Sunday – and they’re now all state champions.
Jordyn Chaix’s two out, walk-off single and Rylee Villasenor’s two home run, five RBI day lifted No. 8 Hahnville to a 6-5 victory over No. 10 Live Oak in the Division I non-select state championship game.
Chaix came up to bat with Villasenor at first base after the latter drew a walk earlier in the inning. Chaix drove the ball to the outfield and Villasenor raced home, scoring on a play at the plate to send Hahnville’s dugout pouring onto the field in celebration.
Villasenor was named the tournament’s Outstanding Player after her big day.
“I was not stopping (on the game-winning run),” Villasenor said. “This is once in a lifetime. Not everyone can say they made it to Sulphur and even fewer can say they won it all there. That’s something Coach (Jeremy) Duplantis preached … I think that was part of my fire coming around third, it was right there and I wasn’t going to stop. To have my name as a part of this, being a champion here at Sulphur, it’s absolutely amazing.”
Villasenor collided with Live Oak catcher Jeanne Janise on the play at the plate – both were on the ground for several moments, momentarily interrupting the Tiger celebration until both players were confirmed to be OK.
Then came more elation.
“I knew if that ball was hit in the gap, I was going home,” said Villasenor. “I had the mindset that no matter what I was going home and scoring that run … I did what I had to do. Yes, my head hurts, but I’m proud of it. I’ll take a headache for the victory.”
Chaix said she focused on the task at hand when she came up in the big spot.
“I don’t know that it’s sunk in fully yet, but I know as a team we worked so hard all season to get here. When I saw Rylee rounding third, I had so much faith in her,” said Chaix. “It’s just such an exciting feeling … as I approached the plate, I knew I had a big job to do, and I believed in myself. And I knew that with Rylee’s speed at first and my ability to work long counts and stay strong through the count, that got me through the at-bat. I’m so excited for everyone on our team. And I believe that we deserve to be here.”
The Tigers (24-12) captured the program’s first state championship since 2011. Sunday’s win represents the second state softball championship win in Hahnville’s history.
“We believed in ourselves,” Chaix said. “And coming into the playoffs as the 8th seed, nobody really expected us to get that far. I think it just shows in the playoffs, it’s any team’s chance to win. Today we had an 8 seed and a 10 seed playing a championship game. And when you put the pieces together, it can work out beautifully like it did today.”
This year the second year as Hahnville head coach for Jeremy Duplantis – and he worked quickly to guide his team to a state championship, It was Duplantis’ second state championship in three seasons, after guiding Vandebilt Catholic to the Division II select state crown in 2024.
“Every time (Live Oak) scored runs, when we got that third out, our girls would come off the field cheering, ready to go and get the bat in our hands, to get up there and have a chance to score another run,” said Duplantis. “Our strength of schedule it prepared us mentally for this moment, playing the top teams in the state. There were a lot of games we didn’t come out on the winning end. To overcome that, and overcome that, and keep the wheels on … knowing what the prize is and our ultimate goal.”
It was a wild start to the game. Live Oak (23-14) got on the board in the top of the first to take a 2-0 lead, the first run coming after Halle Maxwell scored on an error and the second on Ava Kate Phillips’ RBI single.
Phillips got the first two Tiger batters out to start the bottom of the first, but after London Lambert walked, it was a Live Oak mistake that gave the Tigers an opening when Shelby Theriot reached on an error.
With two on, that brought Villasenor up – and she hit the ball out, clearing the bases with a home run that gave the Tigers the 3-2 lead.
That high-scoring first gave way to a calmer next few innings. The score held until Jeanne Janise’s RBI single in the top of the fifth, which scored Maxwell after the latter singled with two outs. That tied it
3-3.
Again, the Tigers answered – and it was a familiar answer. Lambert singled to lead off the bottom of the fifth inning and two batters later, Villasenor blasted a towering shot to left field and over the wall to give her team a 5-3 advantage.
“That was an incredible feeling,” Villasenor said. “I knew I had my teammates behind me … I got on top of that ball and that ball went flying.”
But in the sixth, walks drawn by Bailey Spencer and Kenslee Carter of Live Oak opened up a chance to tie or go ahead. Taylor Mattingly and Molly Latham each singled to drive in runs, tying the game 5-5.
Phillips and Lambert each pitched a scoreless frames to bring it into the bottom of the seventh. Then Villasenor and Chaix delivered.
Lambert earned the win on the mound – in only her freshman season. She went the complete game and struck out five, allowing three earned runs on eight hits and two walks.
Phillips took the loss for Live Oak, also going the complete game, allowing three earned runs on eight hits and four walks.
Lambert and Sophia Patin each had two hits in the championship game.
Villasenor said that there were times early in the season that her confidence waned. The sophomore was the District 8-5A Offensive MVP in 2025, but started this season a bit slower.
But she began to heat up in a big way from midseason onward. And in the championship game, she was very bit the feared slugger she’s been at her very best at Hahnville.
“(Being named Outstanding Player), also feels amazing … my confidence was down at the beginning of the year and I brought that up,” Villasenor said. “And my teammates were a very big part of that every step of the way.”
Said Duplantis, “As we got into the middle of the season, you started seeing Rylee’s confidence come back. She started to hit some home runs. In (the semifinal), she hit a single to score a run. And you could see the confidence there. And today, I knew with a pitcher (for Live Oak) who throws in and out, and not really an up pitch, that goes in (Villasenor’s) favor for sure. And today she took advantage of it.”
It was Hahnville’s second win over Live Oak this season. The Tigers defeated Live Oak 12-7 in Hahnville’s second game of the regular season on Feb. 19. That win over the Eagles was Hahnville’s first win of the 2026 season – and Sunday’s was its last.
After the game, Duplantis huddled with his team for one final time on the field this season and reminded his players – when he arrived at Hahnville two years ago, he told them this moment was coming.
“It’s work ethic. It all starts in the weight room. All summer, all fall. We pitch twice a week, all year long. London is a freshman, and we watched her grow throughout the year. All these girls refused to stay down when we were losing some games at the beginning of the year. They all wanted to come back up, to get better and to give ourselves a chance to make a run at state,” Duplantis said.
The Tigers showed mental toughness throughout their playoff run that’s especially rare for the team’s youth – Hahnville’s lineup is largely comprised of underclassmen.
“My biggest thing as a coach is to make these kids believe in each other, and believe in me, because in 2026 every team has good ballplayers. They do. So, if you can get them to buy in to what you’re saying, and buy into the program, you give yourself a good shot,” Duplantis said.
