Lady Cougars End Season
The Piedmont Academy varsity softball team finished the 2003 season on a positive note, finishing fourth at the state tournament last Saturday in Thompson.
The Lady Cougars improved throughout the season and battled in four games at the state tournament before being eliminated.
“I think we were one of the most improved teams as the season progressed,” said Piedmont coach Danny Camp. “That’s something that several other coaches said about us.”
The Lady Cougars opened play at state with a 12-8 win against Twiggs Academy. Piedmont was led offensively by Emily Beckham (3-for-4, one RBI), Bailey Myers (3-for-4), Carrie Tucker (2-for-4, one RBI) and Mandi Pulliam (2-for-4, one RBI).
Jennifer Knight and Kaci Turner both drove in two runs.
The team then advanced in the winner’s bracket but ran into a tough Briarwood team. The Lady Cougars led briefly 1-0 after the top of the first, but Briarwood had too much offense for Piedmont scoring eight runs in the first, eight more in the second and nine in the third en route to a 25-1 win.
Tucker’s scored the lone run for Camp’s team when Myers hit into a fielder’s choice.
The Lady Cougars stayed alive, however, by defeating Thomas Jefferson 15-3. Piedmont scored five runs in the first and eight more in the second to take control of the contest.
Tucker was 3-for-4 at the plate while Diana Hardy and Libby Aiken were both 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Jennifer Mobley also drove in two runs.
The Lady Cougars then saw their season end, however, with a 15-3 loss to Nathanael Greene in their fourth game of the day. Piedmont led 3-0 going into the fourth inning before the Lady Patriots took over.
“We didn’t make many mistakes against Nathanael Greene,” Camp said. “They just were able to hit the ball.”
Camp’s team finished the 2003 season third in its region. Three of the top four teams in the state competed in the same region as the Lady Cougars.
Pinewood eventually won the state title by defeating Briarwood.
This fall marks the end of slow-pitch softball for Piedmont Academy. Next season the Lady Cougars will begin playing fast-pitch exclusively.
The majority of the teams in the GISA have already made the change to fast-pitch. Piedmont’s junior varsity program has played fast-pitch the last two seasons.