Carson Rainwater stepped into a bigger role to take the DeQuincy Tigers back to the state tournament, while Oakdale sophomore Ainslie Willis’ growing maturity took the Warriors where they had never been before.

They are the MVPs of this year’s American Press All-Southwest Louisiana baseball and softball teams.

DeQuincy’s Brady Carslon is the baseball Coach of the Year for a second consecutive season, while Oakdale’s Stuart Laborde is the softball Coach of the Year.

Rainwater

After pitching behind then-seniors Reese Ashworth and Sammy Maddox in the rotation last year, Rainwater saw his time in the mound increase this season, and he moved into the leadoff batter spot.

“He didn’t have that many innings pitched the year before because we had Ashworth and Maddox,” Carlson said. “He really stepped up and did really well. Most of the time he pitched the bigger games for us, and he always gave us a chance to win. I can’t really think of a bad outing he had.

“I think he really just took a step back on trying to overthrow and try to hit his spots more instead.”

He went 8-2 with a 0.87 earned run average in 692/3 innings with 89 strikeouts. In the postseason, he pitched two complete games to take the Tigers back to the state tournament.

“He had a really phenomenal season,” Carlson said.

In the leadoff role, Rainwater batted .410 with 19 RBIs and 27 runs scored.

“Hitting-wise, he did much better than I was expecting,” Carlson said. “I was very proud of him.

“Instead of trying to hit for power, he knew he had to hit for a better average to get on base more and drive in runs and stuff like that. He was very unselfish.”

Willis

Willis built on her solid freshman season with an even better sophomore campaign and became the glue of the Warriors’ run to the Nonselect Division IV semifinals for the first time in program history.

“She is the heart and soul of that team,” Laborde said. “Without her, I think we could still compete with some teams, but we don’t make it to state without Ainslie, 100 percent. Especially the way she played in the quarterfinal game.”

That quarterfinal game was her shining moment. She pitched a complete game with 15 strikeouts and three walks in a 1-0 win over Oak Grove on the road despite an injury in the final game of the regular season.

“She has always been solid, but she really seemed to get stronger going towards the end of the season,” Laborde said.

Willis went 16-9 with a 1.67 ERA in 125 innings. She had a strikeout-to-ball ratio near 4:1 with 165 strikeouts to 44 walks.

“Her accuracy is what really makes her who she is,” Laborde said. “She puts that ball right where we want it, and I think that is why we went so far.

“There are some girls that can throw it 60 mph, but can’t control it. That is not her. She usually puts that ball exactly where you need it. That is what makes her so special and dominant.

“It is really exciting to see what she is going to do next. Most girls take that huge leap from sophomore to junior year. She just has that grit. Hopefully she works this summer, get a couple more miles an hour on that fastball, a little more movement on that curveball and a little more drop on the drop ball.’

Offensively, Willis batted .403 with 12 doubles, two triples, four home runs and 32 RBIs.

“She really worked on her swing in the offseason,” Laborde said. “She was a top-four batter for us all year long.”

Coaches

Carlson lead the Tigers back to the state baseball tournament for a second consecutive year.

The Tigers went 19-10 and shared the District 5-2A title with Notre Dame.

In five seasons, Laborde has taken the Warriors from winless in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season to the semifinals for the first time in program history. The Warriors went 18-9.