“It’s hard to beat a team three times”

A saying in high school sports that is as old as time was taken to another level in Taylorsville.

The latest chapter of the epic Alexander Central vs. South Caldwell softball rivalry was one of its most dramatic. A strike away from facing a season sweep, the Cougars rallied for eight runs and stunned the previously unbeaten Spartans 12-5 to claim the Northwestern Conference Tournament championship.

Trailing 5-4 with the bases loaded and two out, eventual tournament MVP Kyla Hamby crushed a two-run double off the wall in right center for the game’s sixth and final lead change.

Lainey Russell kept the line moving with a two-run single to right, and Ava Chapman and Kirstyn Herman nailed down the dagger with a pair of two-run home runs.

South Caldwell used a long ball of its own to jump out to a lead in the bottom of the first.

Despite playing at Alexander Central, the top-seeded Spartans took the field as the “home” team for the title game. Mcartney Harrington went the opposite way for a solo shot that gave them a 1-0 lead.

Anna Jordan scored Kaylin Marlowe on a sacrifice fly, and Jenna Mason crossed on the back end of a double steal to help Alexander Central manufacture two runs to take a 2-1 second inning lead.

The Spartans pulled even at 2-2 in the fourth.

Emily Coffey doubled on a line drive to left field that scored Abby Campbell. Kenzie Clontz would follow with a walk to load the bases, but South Caldwell was unable to do further damage after Laney Wike escaped with a strikeout and fly out.

Wike scattered eight hits, and a handful of her seven strikeouts came when the Cougars needed them the most. Alexander Central was able to hold South Caldwell’s Sydnee Bumgarner to an 0-for-3 performance with three strikeouts.

Kennedy Crouch made Alexander Central pay for intentionally walking Harrington in the bottom of the fifth. The senior first baseman slapped a single up the middle to give the Spartans a short-lived 3-2 lead.

Alexander Central scored ten times over the final two innings, the first two gave the Cougars a 4-3 advantage in the sixth. Hamby singled with the bases loaded to tie things up, and Chapman launched a sacrifice fly to center to take the lead.

Momentum continued to be ripped back and forth between the two dugouts when South Caldwell freshman Megan Janyssek rocked a go-ahead double to center in the bottom of the sixth to lead 5-4.

Unbeaten in their first 21 contests, the Spartans could smell victory. This past week their strong play had vaulted them into the No. 1 spot in HighSchoolOT’s statewide softball rankings. Alexander Central checked in at No. 14 — all four of the Cougars’ losses this season have come to teams that have held Top-2 spots in the state this season.

Wike started the seventh inning rally with a one-out single off of Zalee Brown. Her courtesy runner Marlowe moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt, but quickly there were two outs.

Kenzie Church was intentionally walked, and Jordan singled on a ball to third to load the bases. Hamby followed with the go-ahead hit, and the floodgates burst open from there.

Along with Hamby taking home MVP honors, Herman, Chapman, and Wike earned All-Tournament merits for Alexander Central.

The Cougars will enter postseason play 19-4. South Caldwell sports a record of 21-1 and despite the loss, holds on to the 4A west’s top RPI spot at last NCHSAA update.

Entering tonight’s action, HighSchoolOT updated its weekly playoff projections for softball using the NCHSAA’s RPI formula. Become a HSOT Insider to access projections for all eight regions across the state, and see what potential matchups look like for your team:

Source: highschoolot.com