WALLACE STATE ROUNDUP: Lady Lions edge Central Alabama in tourney opener; baseball sweeps twinbill
Published 8:04 pm Friday, April 29, 2016
- Wallace State's softball team waits to greet Katie Parr at home after a fifth-inning solo shot on Friday. The Lady Lions beat Central Alabama 4-3 in their ACCC/Region 22 tournament opener.
ALABASTER — Sarah Ellen Battles and Katie Parr each hit solo homers, and Wallace State’s softball team rallied for a 4-3 victory over Central Alabama on Friday in its Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC)/Region 22 tournament opener at Veteran’s Park.
The Lady Lions, who overcame three deficits against the Trojans, seized control for good in the bottom of the fifth, scoring runs on consecutive bunts for the final score.
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Sophomore Julia Dailey closed the door in relief for Wallace State, earning the victory with 2 1/3 scoreless innings.
The Lady Lions are seeking their second straight ACCC/Region 22 tournament championship, eighth in 10 seasons and 10th overall.
Battles, a sophomore from Hartselle, fueled Wallace State’s rally in the fifth with a leadoff bunt single. Jennifer Gonzalez sacrificed Battles to second, and Amber Hammonds followed with a one-out single to center. Karra Elam scored Battles with a perfect RBI bunt single, tying the game at 3-3, and Taylor Beshears followed with a suicide squeeze, scoring Hammonds for the 4-3 edge.
Battles isn’t known for her power on a Wallace State (45-20) squad that entered with a conference-best 67 home runs. Her solo shot in the third inning was her second of the season, yet her bunt single to begin the fifth inning was as equally important.
“I honestly didn’t think the home run was going out, but it was good to get the team fired up with it. We were hitting the ball hard. We just couldn’t find any holes,” Battles said. “I knew in the fifth I needed to get on base somehow. I thought I might be able to fool them with a bunt since I had hit the home run earlier.”
Battles’ teammates joined in on the bunt barrage in the fifth, sending Wallace State into the winner’s bracket.
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“We just needed to relax and get the nerves out of the way,” Battles said. “Once we settled down, I knew we would be fine.”
Hammonds gunned down a potential run in the top of the fourth, and Parr hit her team-leading 14th homer in the bottom half.
Dailey (8-0) relieved Wallace State starter Brittany Ledbetter with two outs in the fifth, inducing a groundball to strand the bases loaded. She retired all seven batters she faced and struck out a pair.
Wallace State advances to play Snead State at noon Saturday. The Lady Lions swept the Parsons in four games this season.
The double-elimination tournament concludes Sunday with the championship game set for 1 p.m. The winner advances to the NJCAA Division I softball championship at St. George, Utah from May 18-21.
Baseball
Wallace State maintained control of the second spot in the jumbled ACCC North with a doubleheader sweep of Central Alabama in Alexander City on Friday, winning 14-4 and 10-8.
The Lions, the ACCC/Region 22 tournament runner-up last season, continues the series at home Saturday. The first game is set for noon.
“The biggest thing for us is staying consistent. We’ve been either consistently good or consistently bad during conference play. A lot of teams in our division have been in the same boat,” said Wallace State coach Randy Putman, a NJCAA Hall of Famer in his 27th season with the Lions. “This Central Alabama series is the most important series because it’s the current one. Everyone in our division has the opportunity to make the tournament, so we need to start playing well and get on a roll. Baseball is a game of peaks and valleys, and we want to peak at the right time like we did last year.”
Stephen Dobbs has been consistent for the Lions (29-18, 13-9 ACCC), entering Friday’s doubleheader with a .327 average and team-high 22 RBIs. The sophomore exploded on the scene last postseason, earning All-Tournament honors in Ozark.
“Stephen has been excellent for us,” Putman said. “He’s picked up where he left off last season.”
Turner Vincent is hitting .302 with three homers and 19 RBIs for the Lions, while Cullman High product Lance Cleveland has 15 RBIs.
On the mound, Jesse Scott, another former Bearcat, went into Friday with a 4-1 record and 2.57 ERA. Garrett Suchey is 2-1 with a 2.59 ERA.
Wallace State’s final regular season series is next week against Shelton State.