Richie Wood honestly believed the promise he made to Morgan Crawford prior to the start of game two of Thursday's Region 6-AAAA softball championship series was harmless.
The Ridgeland High School senior had belted two home runs in a 3-0 win over Northwest Whitfield earlier, one to dead left field and one to left-center. Coach Wood, knowing his slugger liked to pull the ball, told Crawford if she hit another one out - this time to right field - she would get a steak.
"I am getting steak dinner," beamed Crawford after following up her monster first game with two more hits, including a towering fourth-inning homer to dead right in a 12-4 title-clinching game two win.
Ridgeland (18-7) will host Madison County in the opener of the GHSA Class AAAA playoffs Wednesday, while Northwest Whitfield (20-11) will host Oconee County.
Crawford, who was 4-for-4 with three walks in the two games, didn't just hit the Lady Bruins into submission. She also pitched a five-hit shutout in game one, escaping a small jam in the second inning before dominating over the final four frames. Her solo homer leading off the second was followed by a Ciera Foster double and Cortney Mooneham RBI single for a 2-0 lead, while the second Crawford homer in the third provided insurance she wouldn't really need.
"Morgan had a great night," Wood said. "She hit the two out and I told her, 'That's good, but if you hit one out to right field I will buy you a steak.' Well, I guess she needs a steak because I now owe her one."
It wasn't all smiles for Wood after his team started game two with a pair of first-inning errors that led to a pair of Northwest runs. After a stern talk, though, the Lady Panthers made amends by sending 12 batters to the plate in the second, scoring seven runs on four hits.
Kiera Foster and Ciera Foster had a two-run singles in the big inning, but the Lady Bruins were their own worst enemy in the frame, failing to make three plays that could have cut the rally short.
"I got onto them after that first inning and they answered immediately," Wood said. "I know we have the talent. We have the pitching, every piece we need to win this thing. They get a little complacent at times, which I can't stand, but I am proud of them for fighting and fighting. They kept finding ways to score runs."
Ciera Foster and Katie Carruth had six of the team's 12 hits, with Katie Davis joining Crawford with two.
"Winning the region means absolutely everything to me and for all this team," Crawford said. "I love my team and all the hard work has paid off. Our ultimate goal is to win a state championship. This is just one step."
- Heritage and LaFayette split a pair of games in the region's third-place series, with Heritage winning the first game 7-0 and LaFayette winning the second game 5-2. Game three is at 4 p.m. today at Heritage.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.