Lady ‘Canes Advance in State Finals
For the third year in a row the Lady ‘Canes Fast Pitch Softball Team advanced to the playoffs.
They lost their first game 13-3 to Providence Christian last Friday in Rome at the Class A North Sectional, but bounced back on Saturday and defeated Athens Christian 5-4 in the second round, and were finally shut out 10-0 by Commerce in the third round, finishing in the top 10.
Head Coach Chris Jenkins summed up the three games: “In the first game against Providence we were a little nervous going into the game and they were two runs up on us going into the third inning. We had an opportunity to double them up and get out of a big inning, but didn’t make the play and they ended up having a 5-run rally. We made a couple of mistakes and you can’t do that against a team that good and expect to win.
“We did pick up a win in the second game against Athens Christian. They got up 3-0 on us in the first inning. We scratched a few runs across and took the lead in the fifth inning. In the top of the seventh they tied the game 4-4. In the bottom of the seventh we got the lead off runner on and Erika Bilbrey knocked the winning run in with a triple. Amanda Peterson got the win on the mound.
“The Commerce pitcher had a little different delivery from anything we’ve seen this year and it took us a little while to adjust. It was similar to the Providence game. We kept it close in the early going and then we made one crucial mistake and they took advantage of it.
“The win against Athens Christian was the first play off win for the high school since the fast pitch program was initiated. It’s something to be proud of and our seniors set the standard by making the playoffs three years in a row.”
The Elite Eight, representing the four winning teams from the Class A North Sectional and the four from the South Sectional will begin play today, Oct. 25, at 4 p.m. and continue through Saturday in the state finals at the Columbus Softball Complex.
The initial pairings will be GMC vs. Taylor County, ELCA vs. Treutlen, Gordon Lee vs. Bryan County, and Savannah CD vs. Jefferson