The Wetumpka softball team rebounded from its first loss in a big way.
Wetumpka, which lost to Calera by one run in extra innings on March 14, traveled down to participate in the annual Gulf Coast Classic II Tournament. The Lady Indians, now 32-1 on the year, swept through its opponents and claimed the tournament championship.
It’s the fourth tournament win for Wetumpka this season.
“We had a lot of things going on this weekend with prom and traveling to the beach, and I was really proud of them with how they dealt with what I call distractions,” head coach Daryl Otwell said. “We didn’t practice Friday and had prom Saturday and traveled on Sunday, so we just kind of showed up on Monday after three days off. They showed some maturity and played a really solid tournament over three days.”
The Indians went 8-0 across the tournament and wasted no time flexing its muscles on opposing teams. The first two days of the tournament were pool play, and Wetumpka outscored its four opponents by a score of 41-6.
The Lady Indians were held under 12 runs only once during the first four games.
Due to its success in the pool play, Wetumpka was one of the seven teams given a first-round bye in the single-elimination portion. When the Lady Indians got back on the field, they wasted no time by beating Westridge, 11-0.
Following that win, Wetumpka entered the quarterfinals and began facing some better arms, resulting in lower score games.
Wetumpka beat Demopolis, 4-0, in the quarterfinals and was held scoreless in the first four innings. The Indians only accounted for five hits off of Demopolis ace Ashton Moorer.
Moorer had only given up seven total earned runs in 12 appearances before facing Wetumpka.
In the semifinals, Wetumpka faced the No. 2-ranked team in Class 5A Brewbaker Tech and Memphis signee Taniyah Brown. Wetumpka won that matchup, 2-1.
The Indians went on to beat the No. 1-ranked Class 4A team Curry, 7-4, in the championship game.
“We put the ball in play enough and caught some breaks,” Otwell said of the low scoring games. “We faced some really good competition down here this week that will be really good for us as we move forward into area play.”
While Wetumpka faced good pitching, its pitching was at its absolute best over the week. The Indians trio of pitchers, headlined by Mya Holt and Ella Watson, only gave up five earned runs in eight games.
Holt pitched 22 innings and allowed only two earned runs across her five games. She added 21 strikeouts, and struck out six batters in four of her five games. She pitched a complete game in the semifinals against Brew Tech in what Otwell described as one of her ‘best performances’ that he’s seen from her.
Watson also pitched five times, and had two complete games. She pitched 17 total innings and allowed only three runs, all of which came against Curry in the championship match. She struck out 19 batters.
Ashley Burgess, Wetumpka’s No. 3 pitcher, also pitched three innings and allowed only one hit, no runs, and struck out two batters.
“Our pitchers threw more than they normally do with playing two games each day and then four in the elimination day,” Otwell said. “Mya did a tremendous job all week and pitched great. We pitched Ella in the championship game and did a really good job. I was proud of her in that moment. She really stepped up and was big for our team.”
Holtville falls in elimination play
The Holtville softball team shined in its first two days of the Gulf Shores Classic Tournament, but saw its tournament run come up short in the second round of the single-elimination bracket.
Holtville (16-7-2) went 4-0 across the first two days and outscored its opponents 32-12 in the process. The 4-0 start gave Holtville a first-round bye on Wednesday, but the Bulldogs fell in their first game.
In the second round against Demopolis, Holtville fell 2-0 in an extra innings affair. The Bulldogs tallied only three hits against Moorer, who struck out eight across eight innings.
Holtville pitcher Taylor Price only allowed four hits and struck out six, but came out on the losing side of the pitcher’s duel.
Price had a stellar tournament in the circle. The Holtville ace pitched 18 innings and allowed only three earned runs while striking out 18 batters.
Kylie Snowden and Summer Hutcheson pitched the other two games and both pitched well. Both allowed only one earned run in five-inning complete games.
Bailea Boone and Abbi Snider both led the offense with 11 hits each.
