The Pike County High School Lady Pirates softball and volleyball teams both finished second in the region and are playing in the first round of state playoffs this week.
VOLLEYBALL
The Pike County High School volleyball team finished the regular season 15-7 and earned a second place finish in the region.
“We played Jackson High School and they have had an awesome season so I was not surprised to be playing them in the area championship,” said coach Meghan Smith. “The Lady Pirates fought hard and played tough, but we just could not pull ahead to win.”
Coach Smith said the season was full of challenges due to COVID-19 as well as it being her first season as coach.
“The girls have worked really hard all season long to prepare for exactly where we are now. They will continue to strive and challenge themselves to be the best they can be for not only themselves, but their teammates,” said coach Smith. “This group of girls is nothing short of determined. They deserve to be heading to state playoffs because of the improvements and grit they have shown since July, and that’s exactly what we are doing! We are headed to the state playoffs and I expect them to continue shining, just as they have been!”
photos by tommy polnaszek /
vivid moments photos
At right, Kelsey Bates serves for the Lady Pirates. Below, Erin Bonazza hits the ball over the net as Zy Thompson provides coverage at the net and Julia Thompson and Alexis Barker provide back row coverage.
SOFTBALL:
The Lady Pirates softball team fought hard all season and earned a 17-8 record including playoff games. They finished second in the region championship and play in the first round of state playoffs this week.
“Our goal heading into the region tournament was to get ourselves into the 1 or 2 seed so we could host the first playoff series. The girls stepped up and got the job done,” said coach Kevin Mobley. “We entered the tournament as the four seed and came out as the two. The coaching staff is proud of the progress these girls have made this year, but we still have work to do.”
The Lady Pirates played a double header Oct. 20 at home against Savannah with a third game set for Wednesday, Oct. 21 if needed.
They won both of their first two playoff games in a double header on Oct. 13. They defeated Mary Persons 9-4 in the first of the double header as Julianne Grubb pitched for the Lady Pirates and the offense was led by Madi Neal, Callie Williams and Shelby Duncan.
Jamie Corbin pitched the second game of the double header, going 10 innings for the Lady Pirates for the 10-9 extra innings victory.
Madi Neal and Bailee Brown were hot at bat with five hits each and Emma Smith had three hits with three RBIs. The Lady Pirates racked up 22 hits total on the game. The Lady Pirates were trailing 5-4 going into the final inning but they scored one in the seventh to tie it up. Neither team scored in the eighth or ninth innings but the Lady Pirates put five runs on the board in the top of the tenth inning and then held Crisp County to only four runs in the 10-9 win.
The next day, the ladies beat Upson-Lee 7-4 in another extra innings victory. Juilanne Grubb pitched the 10-inning game with seven strikeouts and 33 first-pitch strikes.
Madi Neal, Maggie Nauck and Bailee Brown led the offense with three hits each. Pike scored one run in the first, third and fifth innings and were all tied up when Upson-Lee scored three in the bottom of the sixth. The game remained tied in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings until the Lady Pirates knocked in four runs in the top of the tenth and held the Knights to four runs in the 7-4 win.
The Lady Pirates played another double header Oct. 15, but came up short, falling 10-5 to Crisp County and then 11-2 to Crisp County.