Bruisers return to state

GPS didn’t mess around Thursday.

Hosting Harpeth Hall in a best-of-three softball series with a berth in next week’s Divsion II-AA state tournament in Murfreesboro on the line, the Bruisers scored five runs the first time they batted and won 11-1 in five innings and 8-0 over the Honeybears.

Three other series within the classification are being played throughout the state this weekend, including Baylor at Briarcrest Christian today at 5:30 and 7:30 EDT and Saturday at 5:30, if necessary. The state-tournament schedule won’t be known until all have been completed this weekend.

Megan Givens hit three doubles in the two wins for GPS (22-6). Her first drove in the first two runs.

After they made nine errors but still slipped by Father Ryan for the East/Middle Region championship, Givens said the players got “the talk” from coach Susan Crownover on Wednesday.

“We knew we had to play well today,” Givens said. “We had to get these games. Today we were going for state.”

The Bruisers continued rolling throughout most of the day. They scored in seven of their first eight innings — Jackie Baird’s two-run single highlighting another five-run outburst in the fourth inning of the second game.

Every GPS starter had at least one hit in the second game. Six of them had two, including Madison Boyd, who singled home two runs in the second inning and singled and scored in the fourth.

“After we won so big that first game, I was concerned about how we’d react in the second game,” Crownover said. “We started a little slow, but we ended up getting out there and getting back down to business.”

Crownover praised both of her pitchers. Lea Capehart gave up one hit in the first game and Payton Leech allowed two hits in the second. Leech had 10 strikeouts.

Shortstop and leadoff batter Tory Lewis, who injured her right index finger on a slide in Monday’s region final, went 3-for-6 with two stolen bases and two runs scored. Her work offensively and defensively will be important if the Bruisers are to win a third consecutive state championship.

“We’ve got to have the right people on base, which is the top of our lineup,” Crownover said. “We’ve got to play a little defense behind some consistent, good pitching. The name of this game is pitching. I think we’ve got as good a chance as anybody to win it.”

Givens agrees.

“I think we’re going to have a really good chance there,” she said. “We lost a lot of really good people from last year, and some think talent-wise we’re not as good. I think we have enough talent to win it.”