Lady Panthers win 3-AAA softball crown
Published 1:00 pm Wednesday, October 12, 2022
- Jolee Paulk makes a running catch for Tiftarea in right field against Brookwood. A win in Thomasville and at Southland Oct. 11 clinched the district championship.
CHULA — Tiftarea Academy has raised the 3-AAA softball crown yet again. The Lady Panthers wrapped up their third straight championship with a 9-1 victory at Southland Academy.
“It was a lot harder to come by this year with the adversity we’ve faced,” said head coach Rob Flick, whose team will carry a 15-5 record into the state tournament.
Flick and crew will have a short turnaround before the next phase of the season begins. State starts Saturday, Oct. 15, with a doubleheader against George Walton Academy. Flick had been waiting Wednesday to find out whether he would be on the road or at home. With a strong final week, the Lady Panthers jumped to 7th, allowing them to host.
The GIAA 3-AAA race seemed destined to go a tiebreaker after Tiftarea split its regular season series against Valwood. At that time, it was the only loss for either team. But something unexpected happened Oct. 5. Valwood lost to Deerfield-Windsor, 11-2, a game that had initially been suspended for weather reasons.
The loss meant that all Tiftarea needed to do was win out. They did.
The Lady Panthers routed Brookwood, 11-5, on Oct. 6. That set up the season finale with Southland.
Rob Flick said he worried about the flow of the game going in. Those fears were abated early. Isabel Fernandez started the contest with a triple. A slew of extra base hits followed and Tiftarea scored eight runs in the 1st inning.
It was enough to Flick to be able to switch his plans in the circle. Pyper McCard has battled injuries all year. Up eight runs, he was able to give her a rest and pitch Hannah Grace Murphy the rest of the way. McCard is now free for the weekend series.
In between the final two district games, the Lady Panthers demolished GHSA Class 7A Valdosta High Oct. 10, 17-4.
Elli Bryan ht her first home run of the year, a ball that Flick said was still rising as it passed him in the third base coaching box. Ali Strenth picked up her 100th career hit in a 2-for-4 performance.
Should Tiftarea survive and advance in weekend play, they advance to the big tournament in Columbus, which runs from Oct. 20-22. The Columbus brackets will be double elimination.
