WHITWELL, Tenn. – Anna Yell looked as though she might be destined to be the losing pitcher in Wednesday’s District 6-A high school softball home game against Sale Creek. That is, until Anna Yell the batter did something to change things.
Yell’s three-run home run gave Whitwell a 5-4 walk-off win over the Lady Panthers, making her the winning pitcher and, more importantly, making the Lady Tigers regular-season district champions.
Whitwell (13-8, 6-0) was down by two runs but had the top of the order up in the bottom of the seventh, which started with Layla McEwen singling up the middle. Maddie Jordan hit an infield grounder, but McEwen beat the throw to second base, enabling Jordan to reach first on a fielder’s choice.
Yell then came up and deposited a high drive over the fence in center field.
“Really I was just thinking ‘Put the ball in play,'” Yell said. “I knew we had good speed on the bases. Right-center, left-center; I just wanted to hit it hard.”