Wildcats erupt for 21-2 district rout
Oak Ridge High School’s softball team closed its 2026 season with a glimpse of its potential, highlighted by a dominant 21-2 home victory over McMinn County in a District 4-4A tournament play-in game.
The Lady Wildcats (11-18-1) didn’t advance as far as they hoped, but still posted their best season record in more than a decade. Their postseason run ended Friday night with a 9-5 loss to Bearden at Kim Hazelwood Field.
Oak Ridge opened tournament play in emphatic fashion Tuesday, April 27, overwhelming McMinn County with a 15-run third inning in the five-inning victory. The Lady Wildcats defeated the Lady Cherokees four times during the season.
Bay Hensley went 2-for-5 with a double, five runs scored and an RBI, while Hadley Gardner drove in seven runs. Anslee Douglas doubled three times and added an RBI.
Amiyah King pitched a complete game, allowing two unearned runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out eight. She also had two hits, including a double, and drove in two runs.
Leah Curran added a hit, two runs scored and an RBI. Taryn McGuire had two hits, two runs scored and an RBI, and Kaylee Primm went 2-for-3 with a triple, two runs scored and an RBI.
Oak Ridge followed with a 13-8 loss to Lenoir City on Wednesday, April 28. Primm went 3-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored. McGuire was 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored. King had two hits, while Douglas doubled and drove in two runs. Martin and Hensley each added two hits.
The season came to a close against Bearden despite a solid offensive effort. Kylee Martin had two hits, while Curran also had two hits and scored a run. McGuire singled, scored and drove in a run, and Hensley delivered a three-run triple.
Despite the early exit, Coach Jeremy Gill said the program is trending upward.
“We didn’t do quite as well as I would’ve liked,” Gill said. “We went 11-18-1, and I was hoping that we would’ve been a little closer to .500.
“Still, we had more wins than Oak Ridge has had in at least 15 years, and in those 18 losses, we competed well and we were in 14 of them.
“This is the first time since I’ve been at Oak Ridge that I’ve been sad to see the season end,” Gill said. “We have a good group of kids, and they’re all freshmen and sophomores. And we have some good kids coming in.”
