In a matchup of two TSSAA Division II softball teams that played in state championship matchups last season, a key adjustment at the plate in the fourth inning provided major dividends for Silverdale Baptist Academy on the way to an 8-1 victory at Chattanooga Christian School on Thursday night.
CCS sophomore ace Hannah Smith was helped by her nasty changeup in holding the Lady Seahawks scoreless for the first 3 2/3 innings, but the reigning DII-A state champions were finally sparked at the plate by junior shortstop Emry Masterson.
Masterson was aggressive early in the count, and she a lined a two-run single to left field to drive in Heidi Bryant and Jaliyah Whitaker for all the runs her team would need. That was just one part of a big day for Masterson, who went 3-for-3 with a double, drew two walks, stole a base, scored twice and drove in a team-high three runs.
“Hannah was really working us inside, so my senior teammate Kennedy Stinson talked to us all before the fourth inning and was like, ‘Sit back and drive the softball,'” Masterson said. “She was like, ‘We are not trying to hit dinks, we are trying to hit bombs.’ That fired us up, and we also talked about hitting the first pitch.
“Hannah is going to throw you that changeup, so you have to attack early when she doesn’t throw her best pitch, and that’s what I did.”