Grace Academy pitcher Lacye Walker and her South Pittsburg counterpart Carmen Wooden took turns being stingy Monday in their Region 3-A high school softball semifinal at Grace Academy. Unfortunately for Wooden, the Lady Pirates’ defense was giving at times.
The Lady Golden Eagles took advantage of some defensive lapses and defeated South Pittsburg 2-0.
Grace (28-6) will host Marion County in the region final Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. Region champions will play at home in Friday’s state-sectional round. Runners-up will travel.
The Lady Golden Eagles’ first run came in the bottom of the fourth inning, which began with Lexie Dean reaching on an infield single. She showed her speed again when she took second on a pitch in the dirt that was blocked and didn’t roll far from the catcher.
Bethany Cowart then bunted Dean to third and not only was safe at first but continued to second when she saw the base wasn’t covered. By the time center fielder Meghan Allen got there, the throw was too late to get Cowart and it enabled Dean to score.
The other run came in the sixth on a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt. Walker had begun the inning by lining a single to right, one of the few hard-hit balls against Wooden, and taking second when the throw to the infield got away.
“We were very impatient at the plate,” Grace Academy coach Tina Walker said. “She was throwing that good little outside and low pitch, and my girls were swinging at it. They were trying to pull it. When you do that, you hit a dribbler to short or a dribbler to the pitcher, and that’s exactly where it was going.
“We had to scratch and claw to get the couple of runs we did get. The girls looked uptight. We’ve been here before. They should be able to handle the pressure a little bit better right now.”
Four of the five hits Wooden allowed were by Grace’s top two hitters, Walker and Dean. Her three strikeouts paled compared to Walker’s 13, but like Walker she didn’t allow a walk.
“She pitched excellent, but we made a few little defensive errors,” South Pittsburg coach Leigh Lawrence said of Wooden. “And we’ve got to hit the ball. Our hits were few and far between.”
Walker was working on a one-hitter with one out to go when Nokia Collier and Lindsey Hutchins hit back-to-back singles. Walker ended the threat and the game on a popout to the catcher.
For the second consecutive year South Pittsburg lost its district-tournament opener. Last season the Lady Pirates lost their next game, too, and their season ended. This year they came back through the losers bracket and made it to the final, which earned them their spot in the region tournament.
“I’m proud of the way they pulled through the district,” said Lawrence, whose team ends its season 16-8. “We were in a predicament and they battled back. They stuck together, had confidence in themselves, and that’s what got us here.”