WEST POINT — New Hope softball took a valuable win at West Point on Tuesday, opening district play with a 4-2 victory over the Green Wave.
The Trojans came from behind to win the game, despite fierce Green Wave pitching and defense. Although the visitors were initially frustrated, they kept plugging away against an impressive Green Wave team and found a way through.
“That’s been our mindset, we don’t dwell on the things that we can’t get back,” Trojans head coach Casey Halford said. “We let it go, move past it, we can’t change what already happened, we just have to use the next pitch to do what we need to do. That’s what we’ve leaned on and it’s helped us come up with hits in those situations.”
The Green Wave jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning thanks to a big triple from Tatum Berry. They were hot at the plate on Monday in an 8-6 win over Starkville and looked to continue that before both pitchers settled in. Trojans sophomore Kaselyn Harcrow and Green Wave senior Ja’leah Orr tore through the early innings, with each striking out three batters in the third inning.
Orr was particularly lethal from the circle, and the velocity on her pitches limited the Trojans early.
“She’s been playing varsity ball since she was in seventh grade and she’s one of those who generally rises to the occasion,” West Point head coach Kyle Stringer said. “She did that tonight, she had a rough patch in the middle innings that made a difference in the game, but I couldn’t ask her to do any more than she did in seven innings tonight.”
Stringer has looked to utilize as many pitchers as he can to keep them fresh coming into district play, and the complete game performance worked in the Green Wave’s favor. There was very little margin for error in the game, and it was the pitcher from the other dugout who made the difference facing down Orr.
“We knew what we had coming in, and I anticipated a good ball game,” Stringer said. “I told the girls it would be close and the small details would be the difference, and that was the case tonight.”
Harcrow registered two hits on the night, the first starting a rally to tie the game in the fourth inning, with senior Jeoreia Henry getting her home before scoring the tying run on a wild pitch. The second hit was a two-run triple to deep left field to give the Trojans the lead in the fifth. She ensured that was enough to win, finishing a complete game performance by putting up zeroes in six straight innings and protecting the lead she provided at the plate.
“It was an adjustment on this mound for her, but she settled in,” Halford said of Harcrow, remarking on an impressive pitching battle. “She’s a disciplined pitcher who works really hard. Ja’leah looked great tonight too and we can’t take that away from her. She kept us off balance and I was impressed by her performance.”
The teams will meet again today in New Hope for the second game of the district series, but after the opening game, both teams have reason to be confident.
“The moment wasn’t too big for us and we came out and played our brand of ball,” Stringer said. “Our two-strike approach at the plate wasn’t what it normally is but we weren’t intimidated. Sometimes in the past, we’ve been intimidated against district opponents but we’re a confident bunch. We’re a solid ball team, we’re confident and it’ll pay off in the long run.”
“I just like how they didn’t lay down, they stayed positive and encouraging,” Halford said of the win. “It’s always an adjustment going on the road and playing on a different surface. We played from behind but we made the adjustments and were able to finish the job.”
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
