By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director
SAND ROCK – Ever since the Sand Rock Lady Wildcats lost senior pitcher EllaGrace Hood to injury three weeks ago, fellow senior pitcher Jadyn Foster has stepped her game up even more.
That continued to be the case on Thursday in the Class 2A, Area 11 softball tournament championship game against Fyffe.
Foster no-hit the Lady Red Devils and finished with 14 strikeouts in leading the Lady Wildcats to a 7-0 victory.
“That was pretty amazing. I’m proud for her,” Sand Rock coach Josh Bates said. “She’s dialed in. She knows what’s at stake. She’s throwing the ball really well right now.
“I told her not to put pressure upon herself. There’s defense behind her and we’ve got to do our job offensively. She gives us a really good chance to be in every ball game when she’s in the circle. We’ve tried to condition her the last three weeks since we lost Ella to the injury to get her ready for the next step, which is the regional tournament. She’s working hard, but she’s not putting the pressure on herself. She’s out there relaxed and spinning the ball real well right now.”
The win was the Lady Wildcats’ 40th victory of the season (40-8). It’s the most wins posted by any Lady Wildcat softball team. The previous record was 34, set by the 2021 Lady Wildcats.
The milestone is something Bates is proud of, but earning a trip back to the East Regional in Albertville is more important.
“We kind of ended the year a little disappointed last year. We didn’t perform as well at regionals as we wanted to,” Bates said. “We’ve talked about that a lot since the end of the year last year. We want to be back in the state tournament, but we’ve got to make sure we stay focused one game at a time. They’re very hungry. They’ve been committed to get that chance to be back in the regionals.”
The Lady Wildcats open regional play against Area 9 runner-up Woodland (24-14) on Tuesday morning.
Against Fyffe in Thursday’s area title game, Bailey Kilgore went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs. Emma Sipsy doubled, scored a run and drove in three. Sherina Foster doubled, walked and scored a run.
Katelyn StClair had a hit, two walks, a run and a RBI. Briley Knight had a hit and scored a run.
Aliyah King drove in two runs. Jadyn Foster walked and scored a run. Lacey Barnette drew a walk.
Sand Rock scored two runs in the third, three more in the fourth and two in the fifth for the final.
Fyffe earned its spot in the regional tournament with a 9-2 victory over Collinsville. The Lady Red Devils will take on Area 9 winner Pleasant Valley, also on Tuesday.