Coalfield Lady Jackets Fall to Sale Creek in Region 2-A
By Terry Futrell
The Coalfield Lady Jackets traveled to Sale Creek on Monday to face the District 4-A Champion Lady Panthers in Region 2-A semifinal competition. Early optimism by Coalfield quickly faded when Sale Creek went on a scoring spree in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a walk-off 12-2 victory over the Lady Jackets.
Mikayla Heidel led off for the Lady Jackets, doubling on a fly ball to center field. Malachi Armes followed with a ground ball single to center, scoring Heidel. Sale Creek pitcher Macie Stanfield threw eight balls out of her next nine pitches, walking both Mackenzy Morgan and Anna Smith. Sale Creek quickly inserted Madison Stott at pitcher. After Carlee Kees struck out, Lindsey Maston hit a deep sacrifice fly ball to left field, scoring Armes. Coalfield then loaded the bases, but left two runners stranded when Morgan was called out for offensive interference. The Lady Jackets took a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the first.
From that point, it was a pitchers’ duel until the bottom of the third inning, with Coalfield managing only one single by Heidel and Sale Creek registering a double by Shelby Sullivan.
Hannah Baskette-Skiles led off with a line drive double to left in the bottom of the third. Stott laid down a sacrifice bunt to third base, advancing courtesy runner Kyla Capehart to third. After a pop fly for the first out, Stanfield doubled on a fly ball to left field, scoring Capehart. Sullivan then singled on a ground ball to center, scoring Stanfield to tie the Lady Jackets 2-2.
The Lady Jackets were limited to one hit, a double on a ground ball to left by Malachi Armes, over the next two innings. Sale Creek also went three-up-and-three-down in the bottom of the fourth.
In the bottom of the fifth, Sale Creek batters took control, hitting Coalfield pitcher Anna Smith for three singles and a triple, scoring three more runs and taking a 5-2 lead over Coalfield.
Coalfield responded in the top of the sixth with singles by Maston and Taylor Landrum, but could never advance a runner past second base.
Then came the disastrous bottom of the sixth that sealed the Lady Jackets fate. Lady Panther Madeline Gentry led off with a double on a ground ball to right field. Baskette-Skiles followed with a single on a fly ball to center. Stott then doubled on a fly ball to center, scoring courtesy runner Sarah Gibson and putting runners on second and third. Leah Campbell hit an infield grounder and reached base on an error by Coalfield, scoring Baskette-Skiles. Stanfield singled on a ground ball to left, scoring Stott. Sullivan followed with a double to center, scoring Campbell. Hall stepped up with Sale Creek’s sixth hit of the inning on a single to left field, scoring Stanfield. At this point, Sale Creek’s lead was 10-2 with no outs.
Allison Smith hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Sullivan and advancing Hall to third. Kristen Sharp then did the same thing, hitting another fly ball to center field, scoring Hall. Sale Creek’s lead was now 12-2. Having reached a 10-point differential, the Lady Panthers walked off with the victory over Coalfield, ending the Lady Jackets season. Sale Creek moves on to face Tellico Plains, who defeated the Harriman Lady Devils 3-2, in the Region 2-A championship on Wednesday.
The Lady Jackets finished a highly successful season with a 17-6 overall record and a 13-3 record in District 3-A.
