Longtime Head Coach Robert Shipman Claims 1st Title in 23-Year Career With Sweep of Deerfield-Windsor
After out-dueling Deerfield-Windsor for the region championship a few weeks earlier, the Valwood Valiants would meet the Knights once again, but this time it was for all the marbles.
Valwood would have a repeat performance, sweeping their region rival in the GIAA Class 3 State Finals to win the school’s first state championship in baseball, marking the first state championship in the career of longtime head coach Robert “Shippy” Shipman.
For Shipman and the Valiants, it was a chance at redemption after coming so close the past two years.
Valwood played Terrell Academy for the 2024 GIAA Class 3A state championship but were swept by the Eagles in two games.
Then, last year in the Class 3A semifinals, Valwood was tied one game apiece with Pinewood Academy, with a chance to win the third and deciding game, leading 2-1 in the late innings.
“We were about four outs away from returning to the state championship,” Shipman said. “We were leading 2-1 in the sixth inning, but they got a squib hit to put a runner on base, and then they hit a two-run homer to take the lead and beat us in Game 3 3-2.”
Although the Valiants were disappointed, Shipman said the team regrouped for the 2026 season.
“The great thing is there was no finger-pointing after that loss,” Shipman said. “We felt like we had another year of just about everybody coming back, and we knew we would get another shot at it.”
Valwood Adds Three Key Newcomers to Complement Returning Core
With seven position players returning, Shipman said he felt good about the team he had, but at the same time felt the Valiants could use some reinforcements in certain areas.
“We already had the players that could hit, field, and throw, but we needed something else,” Shipman said. “We needed additional toughness.”
Much of Valwood’s starting lineup would be returning, including first baseman Dylan Powell, catcher Chase Helfer, third baseman Will Greene, center fielder Brayden Thomas, left fielder Maddux Coile, right fielder Asher Wells, and second baseman Colson Smith.
So when newcomers Josh Skinner, Jayden Purvis, and Lane Pridgen joined the team during the offseason, Shipman knew he had found just the pieces he needed to complement the players already in place.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Shipman said. “The guys we had returning had played for a state championship two years ago and were a Final Four team last year, so they were a very talented bunch. But their ability coupled with the new guys produced a winning formula.
“I knew Skinner and Purvis from travel ball, and I remember how they went about their business. It wasn’t just about their skills. Those guys had a different mentality. They were tough and could play. Skinner brought a quiet confidence, and he had a blue-collar, hard-nosed style, while Purvis was like Pete Rose, a great base runner who was like a dirt dauber. Lane Pridgen came in, and those three guys really fit well with the guys we already had. They all played with a lot of confidence.
“Jayden Purvis became a vocal leader, and he also brought a level of accountability that we did not have before. That attitude contributed a lot to the team and would rub off on the rest of the team already in place.”
In addition to the added toughness, Shipman said there was a need for a new pitcher and another outfielder.
“We had lost Tristan White and Dustin Gibson from the 2025 team, so when Josh Skinner joined the team, he became our top starting pitcher, along with Asher Wells,” Shipman said. “They were more of our 1A and 1B pitchers, and that allowed us to move Colson Smith from our No. 3 starter to the No. 2 starter, and he became a real bulldog.”
