RINGGOLD, Ga. – Under the smoldering afternoon sun at Jack Mattox Park, three area high school softball teams were proving they belonged in any discussion of state-title contenders.
As the Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe Invitational tournament concluded its two-day run Saturday, three teams in three different classifications earned impressive victories. Class AA member LFO downed Northwest Whitfield, which finished third in last year’s Class AAAA state tournament, 4-0. Across the way, Catoosa County neighbor Heritage earned a 5-1 win over fellow Class AAA state tournament top-five team Eastside.
However, it was the tournament’s smallest school that earned the most early praise. Class A Gordon Lee, fresh off wins over both LFO and Heritage on Friday, followed up a 12-0 win over LaFayette early Saturday with a 5-0 defeat of Class AAAAA Cherokee. The Lady Trojans (6-0), the Class A state runners-up last year, backed up their preseason No. 1 ranking.
“They’re strong,” LaFayette coach Glen Woodard said. “They’ve got three good pitchers and they’re really hitting it. This could be one of the best teams they’ve had there.”
LFO Invitational at Jack Mattox ParkGORDON LEE 5, CHEROKEE 0Gordon Lee 311 000 – 5 9 1Cherokee 000 000 – 0 1 0WP: Brenna Nation, 3 IP, 0 hits. LP: Kimmy Stratton. 3B: Kelsey Bickett, Lexi Robertson (GL). 2B: Lesslie Bohannon (GL). Highlights: Robertson 2-3, RBI, run; Sam Taylor 2-4, run; Holli Brooks RBI, run (GL). Record: Gordon Lee 5-0.LAKEVIEW-FORT OGLETHORPE 4, NORTHWEST WHITFIELD 0Northwest 000 00 – 0 5 2Lakeview-F.O. 003 1x – 4 5 0WP: Maddie Bray (1-1), 8 Ks. LP: Allison Manis. Highlights: Shelby Robertson 2-3, RBI, run; Ashley Armstrong 1-2, 2 RBIs (LFO). Record: LFO 3-1.HERITAGE 5, EASTSIDE 1Heritage 101 021 0 – 5 10 1Eastside 000 001 0 – 1 3 1WP: Marissa Patterson (5-1), 6 Ks. LP: Causey. 2B: Brandi Goldsmith, Jesslyn Stockard, Savannah Goldsmith (H). Highlights: B. Goldsmith 3-4, run; Stockard 2-3, run; Kristen West 2-4, RBI; S. Goldsmith 2 RBIs (H). Record: Heritage 8-2.
The win over Cherokee was a microcosm of the Lady Trojans’ success this year. All three pitchers – junior ace Brenna Nation, sophomore Kalie Kimbrell and freshman Brittany Lanham – combined to limit Cherokee to one hit in the six-inning game. Offensively, Kelsey Bickett and Lexi Robertson had triples and Lesslie Bohannon an RBI double. Speedy Sam Taylor had two hits.
Even coach Dana Mull, whose teams usually start a bit slower, was praising the Lady Trojans’ early play.
“These early tournaments are good to see where you are and what you need to work on,” Mull said. “We’ve come out well, and even though we’ve won every game, we see some places we can work on to become a better team.
“We’re starting to come around at the plate. We hit the ball better today than yesterday, so that’s a good sign. These girls like to win and they know how to win. We’ve got a good mix of juniors and seniors, and they have high expectations.”
So do LFO and Heritage. The Lady Warriors (4-1) bounced back from the loss to Gordon Lee with wins over Heritage on Friday and Northwest on Saturday. Coach Tony Ellis knows his team has the pitching with seniors Monica Vickery and Maddie Bray to go a long way in Class AA.
“With our pitching we’ll be in every game, so it’s a matter of getting better swinging the bats,” Ellis said. “We’ve seen some good things this weekend, but we have a ways to go. That’s why we have this tournament, so we can face good competition and improve.”
Heritage coach Steve Chattin also expects his 9-2 team – which won a tournament in Columbus last weekend – to learn from the weekend, including the two Friday defeats.
“It’s a long process, and even if we went 5-0 or 0-5 this weekend, the big goal is to just improve every game,” Chattin said. “It won’t deter from our goal of a state championship.
“The talent level this weekend is much better than last week, so that’s good for us. This team is very reslient. We play excellent defense and our pitching has been good enough. Offensively we haven’t hit it as well as we can, but good pitching will do that to you.”