Latta Wins Class A State Title Behind Two Key Components
By Joel Beachum
Special to the HSSR
LATTA - As with any good championship softball game, there are two key components - clutch pitching and timely hitting.
That is exactly what Latta (20-5, ranked No. 14 in SC) got on Wednesday night in a 5-2 victory over Lewisville to capture the Class A state title at home.
Maddie Berry, the Wofford commit, started the game in the circle for Latta, but got injured in the fourth inning. She was replaced by Paisley Jackson, who normally plays right field. Jackson provided the energy to shut down the Lewisville (21-11) bats. Berry finished with nine strikeouts. Jackson added five strikeouts.
Latta head softball coach Anna Rogers commented on how elated she was of the team's performance.
"I'm so proud of these girls. We've definitely played some tough competition, even in our region," said Rogers. "That prepared us for this moment and we knew Lewisville was a good team. Their pitcher (Sarah Owens) is really strong."
Junior catcher Samantha Townsend was the catalyst for the Lady Vikings, going 2-for-3 in the win with two singles, a Run Batted In and a run scored. She also added a stolen base and was hit by a pitch in the contest.
"Samantha always brings energy. She's so aggressive," Baker said of Townsend. "We are just thankful for her getting things started and pushing us to get all that we could."
This came after Latta lost a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning.
Both Owens and Aubree Smith added a hit. Kyleigh Fletcher of Lewisville added the needed RBI.
Latta got things going in the bottom half of the fourth after Sarah Bryant drew a walk and then stole second. That was followed by Madison Kersey making it first on a passed ball and then she added a steal. Rylan Hunt then came through with a key sacrifice bunt. Townsend then went to work with a single up the middle for Latta.
"It didn't start off how we wanted it to, but in the end we came through. We weren't trying to drive it hard, but just get good solid contact out of the infield," Townsend said after the win.
That put the Lady Vikings ahead 3-2 going into the top of the fifth inning. With two more runs in the sixth to increase their lead to 5-2, that was all the offense needed.
Jackson, who had come into the game, quieted the Lewisville bats for the win.
"It feels great to win the game. When I came into the game, I was ready because I knew my defense was there behind me," Jackson said. "My team was backing me up all the way."
Berry allowed one hit and two runs in three and a third innings. Jackson pitched three and two thirds innings allowing no runs. Owens allowed four hits and five runs in the loss.
Berry commented on the win and how amazing it felt to win the state title.
"First of all I want to give all of the glory to God. We have prayed so hard for this very moment from day one. We have worked so hard, day in and day out. There's no other team that I would want to win this with," Berry said about the accomplishment. "We came so close when I was a freshman - just to have this full circle moment as a senior just means everything."
She also praised Jackson for her performance coming into the game in relief.
"I've always known Paisley was going to be something special," Berry added. "When I went out, I had so much confidence in her and I knew she was going to be great."
For Latta at the plate, Hunt had two walks in the contest for the Lady Vikings. Latta had five walks for the game. The team finished the contest with five stolen bases.
Townsend also praised Jackson and her team while expressing her elation in the victory.
"I can not express to you in words what it means to me (to win states). It was our whole team and a total team effort," Townsend added. "Paisley really came through for us (coming in after Maddie went out)."
Lewisville finished the game with two hits, two runs, one RBI and one walk. Lewisville coach Jerry Thomas spoke after the game.
"We started out the year great, but then we lost a couple of players. We got back one and then we finally got another back before the end of the season. It has been an up and down season with injuries that we've had," Thomas said. This was their (Latta) year. My hats off to them. I'm proud of our girls making it to the state finals. That's a tradition that we started."
