By Becky Taylor

becky.taylor@gaflnews.com

TIFTON — Tift County’s Lady Devils came close to a big upset in the Class 6A state softball tournament, extending No. 1 seed North Cobb to three games in Kennesaw before finally falling in the third game.

Game three ended 4-1. Tift split the first two, falling 5-3 in the opener before Lily Robinson shut out North Cobb, 4-0.

Head coach Jen Walls said her team gave everything in the series.

“We really did,” she said. “I don’t think North Cobb was expecting Tift County to come and give them a run for their money like we gave them.” Walls said it was some of the best softball the Lady Devils played all year.

“We fought every inning,” said Walls. “I couldn’t be more proud of the girls. They had a great season.”

Tift finishes not only with a winning record at 18-12, but the most victories they’ve had in a season since 2015, a team that went 18-9. And they are all expected back next year; Tift County has no seniors.

Walls said the team grew up during the year. North Cobb was particularly impressed, she said, when learning about the lack of seniors.

They hung with North Cobb, which began its second round series against Dacula with a record of 30-3. North Paulding (which swept Lowndes in the first round) and all-world Buford were the other two.

Going into the playoffs against the Lady Warriors, Tift had seen few, if any, pitchers with the level of velocity of North Cobb. Preparations allowed the Lady Devils to handle it well, including Walls turning the pitching machine up to 65 miles per hour. That’s Division 1 college speed.

“It translated,” Walls said. Ella Bruce boomed her eighth home run of the season in the first game, giving Tift a brief lead.

And Tift nearly did something that no one else in the region did, win their series. Colquitt went to game three and fell against Etowah. Both Richmond Hill and Lowndes were swept.

TIFT 4, NORTH COBB 0

Robinson struck out seven in the second contest and was 1-3 at the plate with a double and run scored. Tift scored two times in the first inning and twice in the sixth.

Riley Williams walked to lead off and Robinson’s two-bagger made runners at second and third with no outs.

Marlee Veazey’s single brought home the initial run. Bruce hit a sac fly to score Robinson.

North Cobb had two outs in the sixth when Veazey got another rally going after forcing an error. Bruce was intentionally walked.

C.B. McCrary came through with an RBI single for a 3-0 lead and Kinsley Tawzer followed with another hit to put the game far out of reach.

Robinson helped own cause in the top of the seventh by starting a 1-3 double play. She struck out her last batter.

NORTH COBB 5, TIFT 3

Bruce being intentionally walked in the second game was because of what she did in the first game.

The Lady Devils took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the third. Bruce homered in the second inning, her eighth of the year.

All five North Cobb runs scored in the third and it was a mountain Tift was unable to overcome, though they almost did so.

They got one back in the fourth. Robinson doubled and Veazey singled. Veazey stole second, leading to an error and Robinson scoring on the play. The lead was trimmed slightly to 5-2.

Morgan Brey singled with two outs in the seventh. Braylin Dorden then made it runners on the corners with a hit. Williams singled in Brey, but the rally ended there and the Lady Warriors were able to hang on.

NORTH COBB 4, TIFT 1

North Cobb had a 3-0 lead through two frames Thursday before adding their fourth run in the fourth.

Tift’s lone run came in the fifth when Dorden singled in Tawzer. Dorden had two hits in the finale. Tift had six total. Robinson struck out five in a complete game performance.