Rosewood takes second
By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on May 11, 2011 1:46 PM
One big inning was enough.
Rosewood scored five runs in the bottom of the fourth and held off Ayden-Grifton 9-5 in the Carolina 1-A Conference regular-season finale for both softball teams Tuesday evening.
The Eagles (9-8 overall, 8-2 CC) clinched second place and an opening-round game in the N.C. High School Athletic Association playoffs, which begin May 17.
"I think tonight showed our girls what can be done when they put the ball in play and avoid errors in the field," said Rosewood head coach Tracie Meadows. "Everyone loves a home run, but sometimes a solid RBI single is just as good."
After the Chargers took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, the Eagles battled back and tied the game in the third inning. Kelsey Kornegay drew a walk and advanced on a fielder's choice. Amanda Beckert followed with an RBI base hit and Charlotte Kornegay tied the game with an RBI knock one batter later.
Rosewood put the game away in its next at-bat.
Hailey Mercer drew a walk, Alicia Burns singled and Laura Vinson reached on an error to load the bases. Scout Anderson drove in one run with a single and was followed by an RBI hit off the bat of Alyssa Spell.
Kelsey Kornegay roped a two-run single into the outfield to cap the rally.
The support was more than enough for Beckert, who kept the Ayden-Grifton offense off balance until the top of the seventh inning when a pair of base hits and an Eagles miscue allowed three runs to score. Beckert claimed the win in the pitcher's circle with a complete-game performance that included four strikeouts.
"Amanda did a very nice job of adjusting her style to what suits our team best," Meadows said. "We made some plays behind her, but for the most part she was throwing quality pitches in big situations."