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Gaffney on verge of district crown
Ledger photo by LARRY HILLIARD The Gaffney Lady Indians will host North Augusta today for the district tournament championship. Six days ago, Julie Sarratt and the Gaffney High softball team were too much for North Augusta.
The Lady Indians hope history repeats itself today when the teams clash for the district tournament championship at Wayne Fuller Field.
The game will begin at 5 p.m. If North Augusta beats the Lady Indians, a winnertake all game will follow.
Gaffney coach Kelly Ellis hopes the second game won't be necessary.
"We don't want to go to a second game," Ellis said.
Ellis said defense will likely determine the district champion.
"Both teams hit the ball well and pitch well," she said. "It's going to be whoever plays the best defense."
Gaffney defeated North Augusta and York to advance to today's matchup. North Augusta earned another shot at Gaffney by beating York on Monday.
The Lady Indians needed some late-game heroics from Sarratt to beat North Augusta in the district opener last Thursday.
With her team trailing by three runs in the top of the seventh, Sarratt hit a threerun homer to rally the Lady Indians to a dramatic 4-3 win.
Sarratt wasn't bad on the mound, either, striking out seven allowing just seven hits.
The Lady Indians jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first when Morgan Hughey, who singled, scored on Hayden Kidd's sacrifice fly.
The Lady Yellow Jackets tied the game in the bottom of the first and took the lead with a run in the fifth. They added a single tally in the sixth to lead 3-1.
In the top of the seventh, Cameron Crocker started the comeback with a single. Hughey then followed with a hit, setting the stage for Sarratt's highlight homer.
In the bottom of the seventh, Sarratt caught a popup to end the game.
Ellis said she expects another nailbiter today.
"Every game in this stage of the playoffs is going to be tough," she said.
Ellis said her team must also do a better job of hitting in the clutch. In the first matchup, the Lady Indians loaded the bases twice but didn't score.
