Leader of the Tigers counted his blessings as team made state tournament for the first time since 2013
Allen Gregory | Photo Credit: Emily Ball
HONAKER, Va. – In exciting fashion, the Honaker Tigers earned their first berth to the state softball tournament since 2013 this past season.
That run had extra significance for Honaker’s popular head coach.
Consider the nightmarish news Donovan Helton received in December of 2024.
“I was diagnosed with male breast cancer,” Helton said.
This road involved 16 chemotherapy treatments that continued through most of 2025.
How brutal was the ordeal?
“It was one of the toughest battles I've ever faced, both physically and emotionally,” Helton said.
Maintaining hope and striving toward goals are vital for cancer patients.
Helton knows the story.
“I remained focused on getting healthy and continuing to do what I love whenever possible,” Helton said. “But there were certainly difficult times.”
The 55-year-old Helton has coached softball at Honaker for 20 years, but he was forced to step away from for most of the 2025 season due to his illness.
Move ahead to the start of the 2026 campaign.
“I wanted to prove to myself that I could still coach and do things on my own terms,” Helton said. “Being around my players and staff motivated me to keep pushing forward. They gave me strength and hope, and I tried to give them the same things.”
Honaker pitcher Gracie Shelton certainly displayed strength.
The senior threw a total of 160 pitches over nine innings as the Tigers edged Chilhowie 13-11 in the Hogoheegee District tournament finals.
Shelton also guided the Tigers to an 8-7 win over Rural Retreat in the district semifinals, a 6-2 regional tourney win at Twin Springs and an 11-1 defeat of Rye Cove in the Region 1D semifinals.
The victory over Rye Cove clinched that long-awaited ticket to the Class 1 state tournament.
According to Shelton, the Tigers received a jolt of inspiration when Helton returned to the dugout this past season.
“Coach Helton had the biggest smile because he finally got to come back and do what he loves,” Shelton said. “He always told us that he believed in us.”