The New Hope High School slow-pitch softball team is still striving for consistency at the plate.
It’s the kind of top-to-bottom production that will keep New Hope coach Tabitha Beard from yelling “Don’t reach” to her hitters and will prevent her from putting her hands on her head to mask her frustration.
Beard had moments Tuesday where she couldn’t help put her hands on her head, but New Hope used a 13-hit attack to defeat Saltillo 11-1 in five and a half innings in a Class 5A, Region 1 game at Lady Trojan Field.
“Defensively we played better in spurts,” Beard said. “I saw some great things. We have had a tough few days of practice. We have ran a lot and we have tried to work on defensive perfection. … and I saw glimpses of that.
“I am not as happy with our plate performances. We’re going to have to get more consistent throughout the whole lineup throughout a whole game.”
The victory came in New Hope’s first game since a 15-5 loss last Thursday at Neshoba Central that helped the Lady Rockets clinch the region title. A New Hope victory Thursday at Saltillo will help it secure second place in the region and earn it a home game in the first round of the playoffs.
Beard said New Hope had dug itself a hole following a 6-2 loss to Neshoba Central on Sept. 11 in Columbus. She reiterated that the Lady Trojans still needed to climb out of that hole but that it was one they could escape. The experience the players have gained from being part of a program that has won fifth state titles in a row, and 14 overall, could help it overcome the inconsistency that it has faced in the field and at the plate.
“You have to figure out what you’re going to do in it,” Beard said. “It’s up to them and how far they want to go. They can go as far as they want to.”
Lauren Holifield hopes the Lady Trojans can get all the way to Jackson. The senior outfielder had two hits, including a double and a two-run home run, to help New Hope score four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to put the 10-run mercy rule into effect.
“There is no way you can make everybody hit at the same time. It just has to happen. You can’t really force it,” Holifield said.
Holifield said New Hope hasn’t had consistent production from the top to bottom very often this season. She said it is a concern considering the season is winding down, but she feels New Hope has made strides since the beginning of the season and it can take confidence in the fact it has come together late in the year in previous seasons.
Holifield also wants to see New Hope maintain its focus on defense to avoid letting one error impact the rest of the game, like it did last week at Neshoba Central.
“It was that one inning where it built from there and everybody got their heads down,” Holifield said.
Junior Kaitlin Bradley led the attack against Saltillo with a 4-for-4 evening. Bradley had her line-drive swing down and stroked three singles and a double. Kasey Stanfield and Hope Williams were the only other New Hope players with multiple hits.
Bradley, who plays second base, feels New Hope (19-5) has the potential to produce from the top to the bottom of the batting order. She said her line-drive swing has come and gone this season and that she hopes more practice and a relaxed approach will allow her to continue to contribute.
“I think we have to practice more and get it into our minds that we can do it and have no doubts we can hit the ball,” Bradley said. “I think there might be some players who have doubts they can do it, but the other teammates feel they can do it.”
Bradley also hopes the Lady Trojans learn to focus better the rest of the season. She said the team “wasn’t there mentally” in the loss at Neshoba Central. She said that defeat will motivate New Hope to play better down the stretch and help it contend for a sixth championship in a row.
Beard hopes that is the case, too, not only for Bradley but for all of the Lady Trojans. In addition to seeing signs the defense was coming together, Beard said the players have to concentrate on hitting their pitch and not letting the pitcher or the umpire affect their approach.
n In other softball action, Caledonia defeated Kosciusko 7-5 Monday night in a Class 4A, Region 4 game.
“The girls played a great defensive game,” Caledonia coach Robin Elmore said.
Gracie McCluskey, Sarah Beth Kinard, and Stephanie Wilkes had singles, Nicole Kiefer had two singles, Cassie Obman had a single and a double, Chelsea Goley had a triple, and Hope Burton had a single and two triples in the 11-hit attack.
Soccer
n Indianola Academy 3, Immanuel Christian 0: Taylor Kidder faced 17 shots in goal in the Lady Rams’ loss Tuesday.
Immanuel Christian will play host to River Oaks (La.) in a doubleheader at noon and 2:30 p.m. today. The matches will be the final home appearances for seniors Kidder, Olivia Plant, Mary Katherine Good, and Rachel Strickland.
Volleyball
n Caledonia 3, Williams-Sullivan 0: Morgan Smith had 22 aces and eight assists Tuesday to help the Lady Confederates improve to 20-4 and 6-0 in the district. Set scores were 25-3, 25-5, 25-7.
Elisabeth Shepherd had an assist, Kacy Lovett had two kills, Elisha Collins had six aces, one block, and two kills, Maegen Stewart had two aces and two kills, Jensen Reed had two aces, Sarah Freeman had five kills, and Cara Hopper had eight aces, one kill, and one assist.
n In other volleyball action Tuesday, Starkville defeated Ridgeland 3-0. Set scores were 25-11, 25-13, 25-17. The victory pushed the Lady Yellow Jackets to 14-11 and 4-0 in the district.
Starkville will play at 6 p.m. Thursday against Heritage Academy at the Mississippi University for Women.
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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