Ringgold's Kiana Dale leaps onto home plate after hitting a three-run home run in the sixth inning to give Ringgold's softball team a 4-3 lead at Calhoun on Wednesday. Ringgold had to rally again in the seventh inning to beat the Lady Yellow Jackets 6-5 and take control of the top spot in the Region 6-AAA standings.CALHOUN, Ga. - It seems the Ringgold Lady Tigers learn something about themselves after every softball game. The lesson they learned Wednesday after a scintillating 6-5 win over top-ranked Calhoun just reaffirmed what everyone else already knew.
They are, again, a Class AAA state title contender - even when backups have to assume key roles and stars take a backseat.
Ringgold pitcher Abby McKinney, who had the night off from the circle to rest her arm, nevertheless found a way to make a difference with a go-ahead RBI single in the seventh inning to break a 5-5 tie. Fellow senior Shae Jones, who transferred from Tennessee's Giles County, pitched her most important action yet for Ringgold, relieving starter Katie Cain and earning the win with five innings of two-hit, three-run work.
"It's intense every single time we play them," said McKinney, who was 2-for-4 in her designated player role. "It's never going to be an easy challenge with them. With my arm needing a rest, I felt like it was a good decision to let Shae pitch. I'm so proud of her."
The win, Ringgold's second of the season over Calhoun, gives the Lady Tigers (20-3, 12-1 Region 6-AAA) the top spot in the region standings with two games to play. Calhoun (21-2, 11-2) needs just one win or Sonoraville loss to secure second place. The top two seeds earn a bye into the region tournament's semifinal round and will need only one win to clinch a state berth.
Calhoun and Ringgold combined for five home runs and exchanged the lead four times Wednesday. The score was 3-1 Calhoun after five innings on back-to-back solo homers from Emily Weatherman and Chloe Rice and Rice's fifth-inning RBI single.
Calhoun pitcher Kinsey Liscio retired the first two Ringgold batters in the sixth, but consecutive walks to Dare Schley and Kaylee Womack (who earlier homered) brought up Kiana Dale. The junior outfielder seized the moment, hitting her first home run of the year to left for a stunning 4-3 lead.
"Kiwi hitting that three-run homer was huge," Ringgold coach Shane Pendley said. "She's been flirting with hitting one all year, and we've kidded her about having warning track power. But then again, after she hit it they came right back and took the lead. It's just been that kind of series."
Calhoun's Allie Jones walked to lead off the bottom half. A batter later, Ryan Brzozoski, known more for her speed than power, ripped a two-run homer over the tall right-field fence and a 5-4 Lady Yellow Jackets lead.
The visitors, though, weren't finished. Pinch-hitter Hannah Crosland led off the seventh with a double and was sacrificed to third by Ally Ellis. Taylor Chadwick then delivered a tying RBI double off Liscio, ending the reigning Class AA pitcher of the year's evening in favor of Emily Mitchell.
Following a groundout by Karoline Sholl that moved Chadwick to third, McKinney bounced the game-winning hit between short and third.
"Our sticks came alive, and we had a lot of people produce," McKinney said. "On that hit I was thinking quality at-bat, and though it wasn't the best-hit ball I've hit, it did the job."
Weatherman walked to lead off the bottom half, but Jones retired the next three batters to secure the win and likely regular-season region title.
The two teams probably haven't seen the last of each other, though.
"Maybe it will be like last year and we'll beat them twice in the region tournament and at the state," said Calhoun coach Diane Smith, recalling last year's dramatic region tournament and state championship wins over Ringgold. "We look forward to playing them again. My girls played well, but they just got a few more big hits than we did."
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296. Follow him at Twitter.com/youngsports22.