Lady Cats earn Region 7-4A title and bye for first-round of playoffs
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From Staff Reports
The Greene County Lady Wildcats finish off a season sweep of Sumrall on Monday locking down their first Region 7-4A title in the Tyler Barham era and locking down a first round bye in the MHSAA State Playoffs.
Barham’s squad improved to 6-0 in region play with the 3-1 win over the Lady Bobcats. They opened region play back in early March with an 11-2 win at Sumrall and are 14-2 on the season, overall, with two regular season games remaining.
Monday’s win didn’t come easy as the visiting Lady Bobcats put up a solid fight. Sumrall actually took a 1-0 lead with two doubles in the fifth inning, but GCHS notched three in the bottom half of the inning to secure the win. Sophomore Breeze Jordan started things off for GCHS in the fifth with a leadoff single. Catcher’s interference earned eighth grader Erin Meadows a free base and seventh grader Zariah Knight moved both runners into scoring positon with a sacrifice bunt. Senior Kat Garrett drove in two runs on a double to give GCHS the lead and scored two batters later on a single by classmate Hannah Hillman.
Garrett led the way for GCHS with two hits, two RBIs and a run scored. Jordan also had two hits and a run scored.
Hillman, seventh grader Kambrie Lawrence and sophomore Taylor Brewer were the other Lady Cats with hits in the game.
Hillman earned the start in the pitcher’s circle and scattered four hits without giving up a run through four innings. Junior CharLeigh Stewart pitched two innings in relief, giving up two hits and an earned run, but also striking out two. Brewer pitched the final inning to seal the win. GCHS didn’t allow a walk in the contest.
With the region title in hand, the Lady Cats would also like to finish region play without a blemish. They were set to take on Poplarville Wednesday and finish up the regular season with a trip to Forrest County AHS on Thursday. The outcome of those games will not impact the Lady Wildcats, but are important in determining the region’s second and third seeds (playoff teams).
“We want to finish strong and be ready to play when the playoffs get underway on Monday,” Barham said. “I am very proud of these young women, but we still have some work left to do.”
“We are excited about the opportunity.”
With the Lady Cats earning the bye in the first round, Barham will have the opportunity to scout the teams he will face in round two. He will travel to Florence on Friday to watch the Lady Eagles tangle with Bay High in a best-of-three series. Florence is the No. 2 seed out of Region 5, while Bay High has secured the third and final playoff spot for Region 8. The winner of that matchup will travel to Leakesville on Monday for a double header against the Lady Cats. If a game three is needed, it will be played on Tuesday with GCHS traveling.
Eighth grader Erin Meadows is shown sliding safely into home for the go-ahead run Monday night against visiting Sumrall. The 3-1 win pushed GCHS to 6-0 in region play and secured the program’s first regular season region championship and a first-round playoff bye as a No. 1 seed.
Photo by Russell Turner – Herald Editor
Sophomore Breeze Jordan had a big game for her team on Monday in the field and at the plate. She is shown here making a big catch in center field to end a Sumrall threat late in the game.
GCHS junior pitcher CharLeigh Stewart is shown delivering a pitch during the Lady Cats’ win. The three GCHS pitchers didn’t allow a walk in the contest.
