JASPER, Tenn. - Sara Muir swung so hard at the first pitch she saw in the seventh inning that she nearly came out of her cleats. When she connected on the second pitch, Marion County's gifted sophomore sent everyone in the home stands to their feet so quickly that they nearly jumped out of their shoes.
Muir, a University of Tennessee commitment, blasted an 0-1 offering well over the left-center-field fence for the game-winner as the Lady Warriors knocked off District 7-AA rival Sequatchie County 1-0 Tuesday evening.
"When I came to the plate I just wanted to put something in play," Muir said. "I'm not sure what happened on that first swing, but I knew as soon as I made contact that the second one was gone. It's hard to put into words what the feeling was like. I was just glad to help my teammates, especially after they had done so much to help me today."
With one district game remaining for each, both teams have one league loss, but the Lady Indians (24-4, 6-1) hold the tiebreaker and would earn the right to host the district tournament.
Before her homer heroics Muir and Sequatchie County junior Mackenzie Turner had been locked in an impressive pitchers' duel. Muir allowed just two hits, both coming in the fourth inning when Jadeyn Girdley and Peyton Longson advanced to third and second with just one out. But Muir rallied to coax a flyout to center and ended the inning with one of her nine strikeouts.
"That inning was rough," Muir admitted. "I'm not saying I was scared, but maybe a little worried. Getting out of that was huge for us."
Marion (14-6, 6-1) managed only two baserunners through the first six innings, Grace Sneed getting hit by a pitch to lead off the third and Teja Jordan hitting a fifth-inning single. Turner struck out 14, including two each in the fourth through sixth innings.
"Mackenzie had owned us for the longest, and that was a heck of a show watching those two go at it from the mound," Marion coach Randy Ellis said. "Sara stepped up and did what big-time players do. She really came through for us, and she crushed that last pitch.
"This was a huge win to break through against them. They're one of the best teams in the state, so for us to beat them, hopefully that will give us a shot of confidence."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.