Elizabethton answered the challenge in the District 1-AA Softball Championship series.
The Lady Cyclones slugged their way to a 10-7 victory over Unicoi County to claim the District 1-AA Softball Championship in the winner take all contest. The second game was forced after the Lady Blue Devils took a 4-3 win over Elizabethton in the evening’s opening game.
Unicoi County took a 2-0 lead in the first game with a two-run homerun by Nelee Griffith. The next frame saw Elizabethton answer as Autumn Hensley hit a solo homerun which sparked four total Elizabethton runs.
The Lady Cyclones held the 4-2 advantage to the fourth when Haley Fair pushed Kara Dillard across home plate to tack on a run. The Lady Blue Devils got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with four runs to regain a 6-5 lead going to the fifth inning.
Maci West drove Macie Herrmann across home plate with a single, and Dilliard put an exclamation point on the frame with a grandslam. EHS held a 10-6 lead after five. Unicoi added a run in the seventh, but the Elizabethton defense locked down to secure the win.
Dillard went 3-for-4 for Elizabethton, while Hensley went 2-for-4 at the plate. Kellie Cunningham pitched a complete game effort to get the win for the Lady Cyclones.
The day’s first game saw Elizabethton take a 3-1 lead in the fifth, but the Lady Blue Devils took the lead in the final two innings with three runs combined – including two in the top of the seventh.
Allison Riddle went 2-for-3, while Lauren Brickey went 2-for-4 at the plate. Â Brickey pitched a complete game as she allowed three earned runs on four hits.
