Lady Mavs fall to Eagles, beat Panthers
Anderson County experienced both ends of the spectrum on the softball diamond as it split a pair of District 4-AAA games last week.
The Lady Mavericks dropped a 15-0 decision to state powerhouse Gibbs Thursday night as their young lineup managed just two hits against the Lady Eagles.
Miranda McCracken and Alexis Siebers singled off Gibbs pitcher Lacy Keck in Corryton.
On Wednesday, April 3, Anderson County (3-10 overall, 1-2 in the district) defeated league newcomer Cumberland Gap 10-0 at home.
The Lady Mavericks pounded out 10 hits against the Lady Panthers.
Marlea Finstad went 3-for-3 with a double, three runs and one RBI, while Ella Varner was 2-for-4. She drove in two runs and scored another for Anderson County.
ACHS took a 1-0 lead in the first inning before scoring five runs in the bottom of the third and ending things early with four runs in the bottom of the sixth.
Reese Brock was 2-for-2 with two runs and a stolen base. Lead-off hitter Kaycee Baldwin went 1-for-3 with a triple, a stolen base, three runs and an RBI. Siebers went 1-for-4 with two runs for the Lady Mavericks, who took advantage of three Cumberland Gap defensive miscues.
In the circle, Addy Grooms hurled a three-hit shutout. She pitched six innings. She walked one and struck out 10 in one of the Lady Mavs’ best performances of the season.
ACHS Head Coach Allen Russell said he was pleased with the performance against Cumberland Gap as his team picked up its first district victory.
“We hit the ball well and we hit the ball hard and we hit the ball well,” Russell said. “We put the ball in play against them and they made some errors. Addy Grooms threw the ball really well.
“They have a good little pitcher, and the first three or four girls (in the batting order) are pretty good. After that, they kind of drop off.”
The coach wasn’t as pleased with his squad’s effort against the Lady Eagles in Corryton.
“We went over to Gibbs and Gibbs is Gibbs,” Russell said. “They’re solid but they aren’t anything special.
“We had a lot of freshmen who went to Gibbs for the first time and they were nervous,” he said.
“They were probably a little more nervous than they should’ve been.”