Derby’s rare three-sport star leads undefeated softball team back to state
Karlie Demel has spent her Derby career chasing just about everything.
A ball off a tennis racket in the fall. A rebound in the winter. A fly ball in the spring. A state championship trophy, no matter the season.
That is what gives Demel’s final softball run at Derby a different feel. She is not just a senior on an undefeated team trying to finish the job. She is one of the rare multi-sport athletes at the Class 6A level who has been part of sustained winning in every season, helping Derby reach the state tournament in girls basketball and softball all four years of her high school career.
Now she gets one last chance to help the Panthers make history.
Derby improved to 28-0 on Tuesday, rolling through its Class 6A regional with a 10-0 run-rule win over Junction City and an 8-0 victory over Manhattan in the championship game to return to the state tournament as the undefeated top seed.
For Demel, a returning All-Metro softball player signed with McLennan Community College, it was another postseason moment in a high school career full of them. She had two hits and delivered a two-run double in the semifinal win over Junction City, then scored a run in the regional final as Derby marched on with its best season in program history.
“We knew we were going to be good, but I don’t think any of us expected us to be undefeated,” Demel said. “I think it shows how hard we work in practice and how tightly knit we are as a team. It makes it even better that no one really expected it from this team.”
That is what has made this Derby team so compelling.
The Panthers entered the season with state-tournament aspirations, but not necessarily a championship-or-bust mentality. They had graduated key pieces from a team that placed third in 6A last spring, another near-miss for a program that has been knocking for years under coach Christy Weve with third-place finishes at state in 2019, 2022, 2023 and 2025.
This group wants to change that.
“I had no idea we would be this good,” Weve admitted. “We lost some really key players from last year’s team, but this group has done such a nice job coming together and playing for each other.”
Derby certainly looked the part Tuesday.
The Panthers’ pitching staff continued its dominant form, lowering its team ERA below 2.00 for the season. Ashlyn Hamilton threw a five-inning shutout with 10 strikeouts against Junction City, then Addi Gutzmer fired a complete-game shutout with 11 strikeouts against Manhattan.
Hamilton, Gutzmer and Kelby Clingan have carried the bulk of the innings for a staff that gives Derby a chance to win even when the offense is not overwhelming opponents.
But the Panthers’ unbeaten record has not been built only on blowouts.
There was the season opener against Newton when Derby gave up 14 runs and still found a way to win on a walk-off hit by Gutzmer. There was the Bishop Carroll doubleheader when the Panthers scored three runs in the top of the seventh inning, including an RBI triple by Demel, to rally for a 5-4 win, then erased a 5-1 deficit in the second game for a 9-5 victory.
There was the extra-inning win over Salina South on Olivia Parra’s home run in the eighth inning. There was the Valley Center game when Derby scored twice in the bottom of the seventh to extend the game before winning on Parra’s walk-off RBI single. And there was the Maize South game when Derby came back from a late, three-run deficit to win 12-11.
The Panthers have not lost. But they have been tested.
“It gives us confidence knowing that we can come back in any situation,” Demel said. “We’ve been in rough spots before, but we know we can string hits together and lock down our defense.”
Demel has been valuable in those moments because she has spent four years training herself to be comfortable in chaos.
In the fall, she was a state-qualifying tennis player. As a senior doubles player at the 6A state tournament, Demel entered as the last seed in the bracket, then won three straight consolation matches to finish eighth and earn a state medal. It was her second state tennis appearance.
In the winter, she was a role player for a Derby girls basketball team that won 23 games and reached the 6A semifinals. She averaged 5.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals, providing the kind of toughness, rebounding and defense that helped the Panthers stay among the state’s best programs.
In the spring, she has been an all-around star for a Derby softball program that has reached the 6A semifinals twice during her career, finishing third in 2023 and 2025.
“I loved playing three different sports in high school,” Demel said. “It not only helped me in athletics, but it helped mold me into who I am as a person and my confidence.”
Three-sport athletes are becoming harder to find at the Class 6A level, where year-round specialization has become the norm for many elite athletes. Demel never followed that path.
She was always a softball player first, but she never wanted to give up tennis or basketball. Even in the summer, when softball took priority, she still found time for tennis and basketball team camps and lessons.
She believes the sports fed each other. Tennis sharpened her side-to-side movement. Basketball improved her defense, conditioning and competitive edge. Softball gave her the sport she will continue playing in college.
“I’ve lost a lot of games at Derby and I’ve won a lot of games, but the one thing that’s never changed has been my energy and how I play,” Demel said. “I’ve been in a million different situations, so nothing is really new to me. So I just try to give that confidence to my team. I think playing those different sports really helps me in those situations.”
Weve sees it, too.
“I really do think it helps being a multi-sport athlete,” Weve said. “She sees things from different angles and different perspectives. She has really matured and grown and become a leader for us and she just has that competitive fire in her.”
Derby has leaned on that competitive fire from a senior class that includes Demel, Parra, Kayla Cooper, Hamilton and Charlie Ayalla. The Panthers have also received key contributions from Brielle Hendrick, Clingan, Gutzmer, Jaycie Thomas and Leighton Farquhar.
Together, they have turned what was supposed to be something of a reset year into one of the best seasons in program history.
“They just find ways to win,” Weve said. “We’ve had to play more from behind than I would like, but this group just stays cool, calm and collected. They’re always supporting each other, even when we’re down. They always have each other’s backs and they’re just playing for each other this year and it’s really fun to watch.”
Derby’s state path will look different this year because of KSHSAA’s new postseason format.
The Panthers will play a neutral-site quarterfinal game Tuesday, May 26 with the opponent and location to be finalized after Wednesday’s remaining regional games. The winners advance to Wilkins Stadium on Wichita State’s campus for the 6A semifinals on Thursday, May 28 with the championship and third-place games scheduled for Friday, May 29.
Derby will arrive as the team everyone is chasing.
The Panthers have the perfect record. They have the pitching. They have the senior leadership. They have the scars from past state disappointments. And in Demel, they have a player who has spent four years proving she can help teams win in every season.
“If (being a multi-sport athlete) is a dying breed, then that’s something that I’m proud to say that I’ve stuck around for this long,” Demel said. “It’s just really special and I wouldn’t want to do it at any other school but Derby. It’s been so awesome how supportive all of my teammates and coaches have been through everything.”
Now comes the final chase.
Derby has been close before. Close enough to know what the doorstep looks like. Close enough to understand how much it would mean to be the team that finally kicks it down.
“I feel like we can compete with anyone,” Weve said. “They’re really motivated to bring a state title to Derby. They want to break records. They want to be the first.”
Demel believes this Derby team has something different because of the way it has handled everything thrown at it.
“I think this year is going to be different because of the way we face adversity,” Demel said. “We have shown time and time again that we can come back from tough situations and find a way to win. The way that this team works together is unlike anything that I’ve ever been a part of.”
Kansas high school softball regional scores
Class 6A scores
at Derby
Derby 8, Manhattan 0 (final)
Derby 10, Junction City 0
Manhattan 4, Garden City 2
at Maize
Maize 10, Wichita East 0 (final)
Maize 16, Wichita South 0
Wichita East 7, Wichita North 0
Class 5A scores
at Salina Central
Eisenhower 6, Goddard 3 (final)
Eisenhower 8, Salina Central 1
Goddard 2, Emporia 0
Class 4A scores
at Andale
Andale 3, Clay Center 1 (final)
Andale 2, Rose Hill 1
Clay Center 10, Pratt 3
at Chapman
Chapman 6, Augusta 0 (final)
Chapman 16, Ulysses 0
Augusta 5, Buhler 1
at Clearwater
Clearwater 6, Mulvane 5 (final)
Clearwater 10, Abilene 0
Mulvane 13, Hoisington 5
at McPherson
McPherson 4, Circle 1 (final)
McPherson 13, Hugoton 0
Circle 11, Larned 1
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