Oxford opens park in dramatic fashion
- Updated: March 26, 2016
Lady Jackets win first ever game on Choccolocco Park’s signature softball field 3-1 on Mitchell’s late homer
Grace Mitchell heads for home, where her teammates await, after hitting the go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth inning. It was the Lady Jackets’ first homer in the new Choccolocco Park softball field. (Photo by Kristen Stringer/Krisp Pics Photography)
By East Alabama Sports Today
OXFORD –
The players talked about finally being on the signature softball field at Choccolocco Park to play with words like “great” and “exciting,” but in the end it was nothing short of “awesome.”After twice being delayed, Oxford finally got to play on its new home field Friday night and in the first ever game there, the third-ranked Lady Jackets took down Leeds 3-1.
JoJo Skinner pitched a complete game, allowing four hits and striking out 12. Grace Mitchell hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning to make it a joyous opening.
“It was great,” Mitchell said. “There were a bunch of nerves for everyone playing on the new field and there were a lot of people watching us and we wanted to do real well.
“It’s probably one of the most memorable (homers she’s hit) this year because it’s at the new place. The baseball team got to see it and all my friends. It was just really awesome. That definitely made it memorable.”
Mitchell’s homer wasn’t the first hit in the park. That distinction went to Leeds’ Abby Thomas, whose solo shot in the fourth gave the Green Wave a 1-0 lead.
The Lady Jackets didn’t have one of their better hitting nights. Elizabeth McDaniel checked them on five hits, keeping them at bay with an excellent changeup until their senior right fielder delivered her fourth homer of the season in the sixth.
“The bat before I hit one out but it was foul,” Mitchell said. “When I came up again there were runners on and I had an opportunity to help the team. It was intense. All I was thinking was ‘base hit, base hit,’ that’s all I’ve got to get. When it went out, it was awesome.”
The Yellow Jackets twice before tried to play at the first. Their original debut was supposed to be in late February against Hueytown, but a scheduling conflict forced a cancellation. The teams were supposed to play Thursday, but were rained out.
The Jackets did practice twice in what coach Wendy McKibbin called “an incredible facility” before finally getting to play in it.
Before the game players went up in the stands to take pictures of the stadium and some even got up in the press box to try their hand working the sound system. But for the most part the team stuck to its regular pre-game routine.
“The field is amazingly nice; to be able to play on it is a blessing,” Skinner said. “We were all so anxious to say we’re playing on this new field. When the games got canceled I think it made us more excited to play.”
Oxford’s JoJo Skinner pitched a complete game with 12 strikeouts to win the first-ever game played on the signature softball field at Choccolocco Park. On the cover, Grace Mitchell is mobbed by her teammates at home plate after hitting the Lady Jackets’ first home run in the park. (Photos by B.J. Franklin/GungHo Photos)
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