PV faces long road
- Updated: May 18, 2018
Lady Raiders’ bats come alive in elimination victory over Opp, could play 5 games today; Alexandria ousted in heartbreaker
By East Alabama Sports Today
MONTGOMERY – Pleasant Valley’s bats came alive in its second game of the day and the Lady Raiders played long ball to outslug Opp, 13-6, in the Class 3A state softball tournament at Lagoon Park.
The Lady Raiders hit three homers in the game and the top half of their lineup went a combined 15-for-22 with nine RBIs.
They will now play Locust Fork in the first of possibly five elimination games Friday at 9 a.m.
Lindsey Pritchett went 3-for-5, Julianna Ballew went 4-for-5, Savannah Williams went 3-for-5, Mac Parris went 2-for-3 with two homers and five RBIs, and Mikayla Kendrick went 3-for-4 with two RBIs.
“We were patient and had great senior leadership from Mac and Kendrick as well as Olivia (Jones) in the circle,” PV coach David Bryant said. “It was a great team win with everybody contributing and making adjustments mid-game.”
Parris hit a grand slam to highlight an eight-run second inning that erased a 4-0 deficit and gave the Lady Raiders control of the game. Not to be overlooked in the big inning was Ava Boozer’s 11-pitch at-bat that resulted in a single to get the inning started.
Eighth-grader Rylee Haynes hit a two-run homer – her first ever – and Kendrick had a two-run double in the third inning, and Parris hit her second homer of the game in the fifth.
The Lady Raiders dropped into the losers bracket when they lost their opener to Plainview 6-2. Plainview broke a 2-2 tie with four runs in the fourth inning.
“It felt good to bounce back from the first game since we didn’t play very well,” Parris said. “But once we got our bats going and quit making mistakes on easy plays we came together as a team and started to play like we’re supposed to.”
Alexandria’s season ends in heartbreaker
The Lady Cubs were eliminated by longtime nemesis and eventual state champion Springville in their first game of the day, 5-4.
Springville pushed across the winning run on Dakota Dorsett’s one-out single in the bottom of the seventh after the Lady Cubs tied the game with three in the top of the inning.
Dorsett delivered her game-winning hit after Kaylee Chapman put two runners in scoring position with a double. Chapman also hit a solo homer in the first inning.
Alexandria went into the seventh trailing 4-1. The Lady Cubs loaded the bases on consecutive one-out singles by Alyssa Carrizales, Mattie Wade and Ashley Phillips. Maggie Phillips walked the first run of the inning home, then Millie Burt delivered a two-out, two-run single to tie it.
The teams were playing for the fourth time this season. Springville blanked the Lady Cubs 3-0 in their tournament opener Wednesday morning.
The Lady Tigers (46-7-1) later beat St. Clair County rival Moody 8-4 and 3-0 to win their fourth straight 5A state title. Pitcher Abby Swaney, who threw a five-hit shutout in the title game, was named MVP.
Springville 5, Alexandria 4
Alexandria 001 000 3 – 4 6 0
Springville 111 010 1 – 5 9 1
WP: Swaney. LP: Phillips. HR: Brown (S), Chapman (S).
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