Lady Cougars To Play for State Title

Piedmont Academy’s fast-pitch softball team finds itself in familiar territory.

The Lady Cougars will try to clinch its second GISA Class AA state championship in as many seasons when they face Briarwood Academy Saturday. The best-of-three series will be at Mercer University in Macon beginning at 11 a.m.

Saturday’s championship series will be a rematch of the 2017 state finals between Piedmont and Briarwood. Lady Cougars coach Colt Spivey expects a tough series, similar to last October.

“It’s not going to be easy,” Spivey said. “We lost two players from our starting lineup from last year and I don’t think they lost any. It is going to be tough. Both teams have two good pitchers and both teams are strong offensively.”

The two schools have several players who are set to compete at the collegiate level but Saturday’s championship is the most pressing business at the moment.

“We have to make sure we eliminate our mistakes,” Spivey said. “If we play mistake-free we have a good chance. It really comes down to whichever teams executes the best. We will try to do what we have done all season.”

The first game between Piedmont and Briarwood will be at 11 a.m. The Class A, AA and AAA finals are all Saturday. The second game for the Lady Cougars and Lady Buccaneers is tentatively set for 3 p.m. A third game, if necessary, would be later that day.

The teams did not play during the regular season. A game was scheduled but had to be cancelled so Briarwood could make up a region contest.

Piedmont advanced to the championship by sweeping Windsor Academy of Macon last Saturday in a home semifinal series. The Lady Cougars posted 4-2 victories in both contests.

In the opener, Piedmont scored all four of its runs in the bottom of the third inning. Windsor pushed two runs across in the top of the fourth inning.

Maddie Morton and Cassidy Cook both had two hits while Mattie Johnston drew a walk. Cook had four RBI in the win.

Morton was strong once again in the pitcher’s circle going all seven innings while scattering three hits and striking out seven.

In the second game Saturday afternoon the game was tied 1-1 after the first inning. The Lady Cougars scored runs in the third, fifth and sixth innings while the Lady Knights added its second run in the sixth.

Madison Johnson and Morton helped lead the team offensively with two hits each while Johnson, Morton and Neely Bradford each drew a walk.

Bradford earned the win working seven innings and striking out two batters. The Piedmont defense was strong behind Bradford and did not commit an error.

“Windsor is always strong in the playoffs,” Spivey said. “They are always tough and ready to play. It doesn’t matter about what they do in the regular season. When the playoffs start you know you are in for a battle against Windsor.”

Piedmont enters the finals 20-2-1 overall. The lone losses came against GHSA program Eastside High School (6-0) and defending GISA Class AAA champions Westfield (5-4). The Lady Hornets are also back in the state finals in their classification. Spivey’s team has wins against a GISA Class AAA foe and two GHSA teams in 2018.