After seven long and intense innings with the Charleston Lady Tigers, the Hackett Lady Hornets took the defeat 4-5. With no action until the bottom of the third when the Lady Tigers brought home three runs, the Lady Hornets were able to get on the board in the top of the fourth inning when Madi Taylor scored on a wild pitch. As Hackett kept Charleston scoreless in the bottom of the fourth, the Lady Hornets got things moving yet again to start the fifth. With the score reading 3-1 in the Lady Tigers’ favor, Hackett knew they had to start making magic happen.
With Madeline Freeman out on a sacrifice fly to center field, Lexi Gann was able to get home faster than Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. And after Sarah White tripled on a line drive to center field, Shayla Foster scored tying the game 3-3. After another hitless inning from the Lady Tigers, the battle waged on to stay neck-and-neck in the sixth with each team earning just one run apiece. For the Lady Hornets, it was a Gann ground ball that reached on an error by a Charleston shortstop that sent Alona Rothwell home and finishing the inning tied 4-4.
With the sun beating on their backs and sweat dripping down their faces, Hackett opened the seventh and last inning. But as fate would have it, the Lady Hornets would not be walking away with the bag of diamonds as they were unable to make the scoreboard move leaving the Lady Tigers to secure a run and end the game 5-4 Charleston. This battle has Hackett with a 6-7 record. Pitching for the Lady Hornets was Kayla Richardson who launched 114 pitches to 34 batters striking out 3. When it comes to total season stats for Hackett, the Lady Hornets earned 2 home runs from Foster and Jayme Durham, 99 runs led by Freeman and Foster with 16 each, 215 putouts with White taking 57 and Durham taking 53, and 95 assists. The Hackett Lady Hornets will hit the dirt again on Monday, April 12 when they take on the Hector Lady Wildcats on the road.
Photos courtesy of Bridget Freeman
