RINGGOLD, Ga. – Daniel Hackett admits he loves for his Ringgold High School softball team to play small ball, but the coach also realizes there are times to absolutely swing away.
Tied at 2-2 and with runners on second and third in the fifth inning Thursday against Region 6-AAA rival Calhoun, two attempts to apply pressure with bunts failed. What could have been a momentum-killing moment, however, turned decisive as sophomore Baileigh Pitts saved the Lady Tigers with a two-run double, sparking an eight-run inning that led to a 9-4 win.
The Lady Tigers (11-3, 6-0), who now own league wins over Calhoun (12-6, 5-1) and Sonoraville (8-5, 4-1), are one win away from clinching the top seed for what will be a revamped 6-AAA postseason. League teams play each other only once during the regular season. The top two teams will face off in a best-of-three series to determine the champion, and the next six teams will conduct a tournament to determine the final two playoff qualifiers.
“It’s a huge, huge win for us,” Hackett said. “We used to play everybody twice in the region, and once we got in the region tournament we would play some teams four times before we got to state. We’re trying to minimize it some, and it allows us to play more local nonregion teams.”
Calhoun has long been a thorn in Ringgold’s side, having won three AAA state championships in the past five seasons, including beating the Lady Tigers to clinch the 2014 title.