Softball Team Wins Three Of Four, Begins Playoff Action Thursday At Home
Water Valley’s Haley Shell picks up a hit against Cleveland East Side in the last regular season game. – Photo by Johnny Avant
Tyler Epes is ready to run. Epes scored two of the Lady Devils 14 runs against Cleveland East Side. – Photos by Johnny Avant
Best-Of-Three Series Starts With Competition Against Nettleton
By Johnny Avant
Contributing Writer
WATER VALLEY – After a full week of softball, Water Valley’s varsity squad found themselves winners of three out of their last four regular season games and heading into the playoffs on a winning note.
The first win of the week came on Monday, April 19, at Charleston. The Lady Devils struggled early and were trailing the Lady Tigers by a score of 4-3 entering the third inning, but in the top of the third the offense exploded! All nine starters scored in the inning, Water Valley scored 17 unanswered runs and won by a final score of 20-4.
The junior varsity finished their season on a winning note as well, defeating Charleston 12-2 and ending the year with a very respectable 8-1 record.
The Lady Devils also took two varsity games from Cleveland East Side on Thursday, winning both games by a combined score of 34-0.
The only loss of the week came as Water Valley traveled to Independence to battle for the division championship. The Lady Devils defeated the Lady Wildcats earlier in the year and were hoping for the same results this time around. However, Independence had other plans and made a statement in the first inning by taking a 7-0 lead.
The Lady Devils struggled offensively and only managed one run. The Lady Wildcats added four more runs to their first inning total and won the division by beating Water Valley 11-1.
Despite the loss, Water Valley is the division runner-up and will begin playoff action this weekend. As luck would have it, the Lady Devils will play the Lady Tigers of Nettleton in the first round. According to Maxpreps.com, Nettleton is the number one fast pitch team in the state with a record of 20-2.
Anything can happen in the playoffs and the Lady Devils will have a great opportunity to make a statement about how far their program has come in recent years.
The first game of the best-of-three series is scheduled for Thursday at 6 p.m. in Water Valley. Game two will be at Nettleton Friday at 5 p.m.
