After four innings went by in Thursday’s District 5-A high school softball tournament final, the run Grace Academy put up in the first inning started to look pretty big. An inning later, not so much.
In the bottom of the fifth the Lady Golden Eagles erupted for nine runs, the last the clincher in a 10-0 victory over Silverdale Baptist at Grace.
District champions play at home in Monday’s region semifinals. In Region 3, Grace (27-6) will host South Pittsburg at 7 p.m.
“I’m so proud of these girls,” Grace coach Tina Walker said. “This is just the first step toward our goals. I give all the credit to these girls and all the hard work they’ve put into it.”
Silverdale (18-8) will play Monday at District 6 champion Marion County. Beating Arts & Sciences earlier in the day secured the Lady Seahawks’ region berth.
“The big game was at 3 o’clock,” Silverdale coach Chip Liner said. “The wheels just came off in the fifth inning in this one.”
The Lady Golden Eagles’ early run came courtesy of Lexie Dean’s triple to the left-field fence with one out and Kaitlyn Eldridge’s single to left with two outs.
Dean also was a key figure in the big rally. She singled and scored in her first at-bat, singled in a run in her second and wound up scoring the run that ended the game by mercy rule.
For such a large outburst, Dean’s RBI was one of only three for Grace that inning. Silverdale aided the Lady Golden Eagles’ six singles in the inning with four errors and two Kelsey Dishroon wild pitches. Bethany Cowart and Eldridge drew walks, Eldridge’s intentional, and both came around to score.
“Kelsey pitched well for four innings,” Liner said. “We did some good things. They send a lot of great hitters to the plate.”
The Lady Seahawks often put the ball in play against winning pitcher Lacye Walker, who struck out four, walked one and hit one, but managed one hit. It was Dishroon’s pop fly that fell in left-center when Silverdale loaded the bases in the first inning.
Coach Walker’s husband Alan was calling the pitches for their daughter.
“He was having her move it in and out a little bit more,” Tina Walker said. “They hit a lot off the end of the bat and a lot off the handle. They hit it, but they were just kind of dinking it and dunking it here and there.”