Houston County and Perry have each punched their ticket to Columbus.
No disrespect intended, but Lakeside, Evans hardly presented a bump in the road for the Lady Bears. They rolled to a 13-0 win in four innings in Game 1, and then beat the Lady Panthers 16-3 in five innings in Game 2.
The “other” Lady Panthers won Game 1, 14-5, and then had to rally a bit to win Game 2, 10-9.
Houston County will square off against Creekview next. It beat Dacula 14-4, 6-5. Their game is set for Thursday at 11 a.m. on Field No. 6 (the Columbus Softball Complex).
Perry will face off against Marist. It had its hands full with Central, Carroll, but managed to pull out an 8-7 win in Game 1 and 8-6 victory in Game 2. Their game is also set for Thursday, in the Stadium, with the first pitch to be thrown at 5 p.m.
“We are still so excited about making the Elite 8,” said Head Coach Kyle Davis. “The team played relaxed but with passion in both games. The girls knew how big it was to make the Elite 8 and they wanted it more than anything.
“Nobody even thought we would make it this far so I am extremely proud of them. We have definitely had our ups and downs this year and have dealt with a lot of adversity. We have won five in a row and averaging over 11 runs during that streak. We are hot right now and if we continue to swing the bats like we have been I feel confident that we can play with anybody. I also feel like we are the underdog and I like it that way. We can go to Columbus relaxed with nothing to lose. The pressure is on the other teams.”
Houston County put 16 hits on the board in the first game against Lakeside, Evans. With Rylee Lamb on the mound, it really needed just a fraction of them. She gave up one hit while striking out four and not walking a hitter.
Three of the Lady Bears’ hits came via Madi Campbell. She was 3-3 with two driven in and two runs scored. Megan Whitaker also went 3-3 and scored twice. Grace Hardee went 2-2 with a walk. Both of hers were triples. She drove in three and scored twice. Also, Kenly Sullivan went 2-3, with both of hers doubles. She earned three RBIs as a result.
Houston County got off to a modest start – in overall comparison – with one run in the first. By the time the ladies went back on the field in the third, however, they were up 6-0. Seven more runs came in the third, with them not needing to hit in the fourth.
The Lady Panthers must have sensed a bit of hope in Game 2. After all, with Houston County only scoring lone runs in the first and second, and with them pushing one across in the first and two home in the second, they were up 3-2.
Another five-run inning, and another seven-run inning – back-to-back like the first game – took care of that. That put the Lady Bears up 14-3. Two more runs in the fifth was just batting practice.
Houston County pounded out 21 hits total, and 14 had at least one at bat. Campbell again picked up three hits. This time she was 3-5 with three RBIs and two scored.
Sullivan went 3-4 this time. One of hers was a double as she add three more RBIs to her total. Kendall Huelsman also had a triple while going 3-3 and scoring twice. Grace Hardee had a double while going 2-4 with an RBI and two scored and Lamb went 2-2 with a walk and drove in two. She again worked a complete game, this time giving up the Lady Panthers’ four hits, striking out four more and walking two.
Against Thomson, a seven-run third proved to be the catalyst for Perry in Game 1. The Lady Panthers only led 1-0 at that time. It proved to be even more important considering the fact the Lady Bulldogs scored three in the bottom of the inning and then added two more in the fourth.
Perry added a trey in both the fifth and sixth while out-hitting Thomson 17-11.
Annie Chance had four of those hits – one a double – while driving in a whopping six runs. She was 4-5 and also scored once.
Terra Odom also drove in two while going 2-3 with a walk. One of hers was a triple and thanks to Chance, she scored all three times.
Ashley Gidney worked all six innings for the win. She struck out one and didn’t walk a batter.
Perry got off to a well-enough start in Game 2. It scored three in the first and one each in the second to lead 5-1 – the Bulldogs getting one in the first. An eight-run fourth, however, made it 9-5, Thomson.
That might have just served as a wake-up call, however, as the Lady Panthers made it 9-8 with three runs in the fifth and then got out front with two in the bottom of the sixth. The then kept Thomson off the board in the seventh for the win.
Perry out-hit Thomson 11-9.
Chance again was a major contributor. She went 2-4 with a walk. One of her hits was a triple, as she drove in two and scored twice.
Also, L.T. Reynolds had a homerun while going 1-3 and driving in two. Emma Pruitt also went 1-3 with two driven in.
Charisma Walker worked three innings for Perry. She gave up two hits and seven – six walks didn’t help her cause. Gidney finished up. She scattered seven hits while striking out two and walking two and allowing two runs.
