Photo by Leigh Downey
The James River softball team can clinch a spot in the state tournament with a win over Patrick County tonight. The Knights will host Patrick at 7 p.m. at the Botetourt Sports Complex in a Region 2C semifinal game.
Patrick comes in at 13-9 overall after defeating Floyd County, 11-1, in a quarterfinal region game. The Knights slipped by Nelson County, 1-0, last Thursday in their quarterfinal game in Springwood. Tonight’s winner will advance to the Region 2C championship game at the BSC on Thursday at 7 p.m., and both of those teams will advance to state play with the winner getting a quarterfinal home game.
The Knights come into tonight’s game at 20-1 after getting a scare from Nelson, who beat Glenvar 1-0 in an opening round game. Kaycee Kincaid’s drive up the right center field gap scored pinch runner Caitlyn Downey in exciting fashion in the bottom of the seventh inning with the only run of the game for River. The River players ran to mob Kincaid at second base after the walk-off win.
The first six innings of the game had been a high-level pitching duel. For the third time in recent weeks, Knights’ pitcher Austyn Moran had a perfect game heading into the last inning, having retired the first 18 batters she faced. Governors’ pitcher Ambrye Taylor had only allowed a walk and an infield hit in the same time period while striking out 13 batters.
In the top of the seventh, Moran retired a 19th straight batter before Nelson catcher Ansley Jenkins, a left-handed hitter, sliced a double into the left field corner just out of the reach of a diving Ripley Barry. Kincaid made an outstanding catch on Taylor’s high pop up behind the plate for the second out before Moran struck out Nelson’s clean-up hitter, Meghan Nuckols, for the third time.
In the home seventh, with one out, Moran looped a fly ball to right field that dropped for a hit and Moran reached second base on a throwing error. Downey came in to as a courtesy runner for the pitcher, then Kincaid drove a 1-2 pitch to the right center gap setting off a home team celebration.
James River played errorless softball on defense and they made several notable plays to give themselves a chance to win late in the fashion that they did. Keira Crawford, who made a couple of stellar defensive plays in right field, had the only other River hit, an infield hit in the sixth.
“First off, I give enormous credit to Governors’ pitcher Ambrye Taylor,” said River coach Steve Austin. “We struck out 13 times in six innings. We came in averaging 3.4 strikeouts per game on the season and we have faced several other tough pitchers. We made different adjustments but until late in the game she totally shut us down.”
“Our pitcher, Austyn Moran, was as dominating to Nelson, or more, than Taylor was to us. She was the story of the game for us, keeping the score even until we got a couple of hits in the last inning.”
Tonight’s winner will play the winner of a semifinal game between Chatham and Appomattox on Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Botetourt Sports Complex.
