The Elmore County softball team is hitting its stride at the right time.
Last Tuesday, the Panther marched out to a resounding 14-1 win over the Dadeville Tigers, but it was not all sunshine and rainbows to start.
Both teams struggled to get anything going through the first two innings, ending the first two frames scoreless. However, when the third inning began, it was all Elmore County from that point on.
The Panthers scored four runs to soar into the lead and put up scores in each inning until the game reached its conclusion in the sixth. Their biggest scoring output came in that final frame where they scored seven runs, capped off with an Addy Peadan home run.
In total, Elmore County finished the night with 15 hits with Addi Stephenson picking up three of her own. Kayden Edwards, Brooklyn Berry, Addie Patterson and Baileigh Ames chipped in with two apiece.
“I thought we did really well,” Elmore County coach Meghan Harris said. “We were disciplined at the plate, finally started hitting the ball. I thought the girls really stepped up and did good on the offensive side.”
The success on the offensive side translated into how the Panthers approached defense. Pitchers Lalah Culpepper and Bailey Kennedy gave the Tigers fits at the plate. Each of them allowed two hits each against opposing batters, striking out three batters in total with only one run earned.
“Both of our pitchers did a really great job throwing today,” Harris said. “(They were) hitting their spots and throwing what we needed to have our defense back them up as well.”
Since Elmore County’s win over Dadeville, it has won three of its last four games — scoring 10 or more runs in all three wins.
Now the next challenge is to carry that momentum into the area tournament. Having already captured the area title over Beauregard, the Panthers acquired home-field advantage for the tournament. Much of what Harris saw against Dadeville she wants to replicate going forward.
“I think offensively, we got to keep hitting the ball and seeing the ball backing up our pitcher on defense,” Harris said. “I think our pitching staff has done really well this year. If we keep hitting the ball like we have been the past couple of weeks, I think we could go far.”
