Oak Hill Academy and Starkville Academy both added another tick in the softball win column on Monday, and Heritage Academy got its season started on the diamond with a setback. 

The Volunteers used 14 hits and 19 RBI to wallop Hebron Christian 22-3 in Pheba for a bounce-back win that improves the team to 2-1 on the season.

Azleigh Slivka held down the Vols in the circle as she pitched all three innings and gave up only three hits and three earned runs with three walks and just as many strikeouts. On offense, though, SA could do no wrong. Sarah Montgomery led the way with three hits and an RBI, and Addie Smith, Emmi Miller, Ella Kate Heflin, Slivka and Molly Ingram all had two hits each. Ingram led the team with six RBI, Smith produced four RBI and Slivka, Presley Sowell and Miller all had two RBI each.

SA, which hosted Calhoun Academy on Tuesday, is back on the diamond tomorrow as it hosts Calhoun at 6:30 p.m.

Oak Hill Academy 4, Calhoun Academy 3

For the Raiders, Kaelyn Pennington put on a superb display of two-way excellence as she fanned five batters from the circle and drilled a solo home run – the first of her high school career – in the sixth inning to lift Oak Hill to a 4-3 win over Calhoun Academy. 

It was a big answer in a big moment for the freshman, but that’s what head coach Lewis Earnest has come to expect from Pennington.

“She was our best hitter last year and (I) expect her to be this year,” Earnest said. “She started off a little rough, but she’s coming around now.” 

Mollie Caroline Brand opened the scoring for the Raiders (4-1) with a solo shot to left field to start a spree of three runs scored in the first inning. The Cougars used four Raider errors and a total of seven hits to add one run in the bottom of the first, second and fifth innings to tie the game before Pennington’s heroics took over. Pennington and Parker Higginbotham each had two hits along with Brand’s homer. Mary Crosley Coker also had an RBI. 

The team’s hitting is still not quite as sharp as Earnest wants it, but he said they are slowly getting better each game.

“It seems like we hit better pitching – better,” he explained. “I don’t know if that’s going to end up being the case, but so far, we tend to hit the faster pitching better. I don’t know how it’s going to shake out; that’s down the line. We’re 4-1, and I’m happy with that.”

Oak Hill goes for five wins in a row Friday when it hosts Kirk Academy at 6:30 p.m, but it will likely have to play the rest of the season without starting third baseman Lucy Ramsay. Earnest said the freshman injured her knee during a slide in Monday’s game and had to be taken out. 

“She may have torn up her knee,” he said. “(She) went to the doctor (yesterday) to get an MRI and will find out more about that later, but it didn’t look good.”

Earnest said it’s not easy, but he’s working on finding a replacement for Ramsay, who is a “solid” contributor to the team.  

“Maybe someone will step up,” he said. 

Newton Academy 18, Heritage Academy 1

Heritage’s softball opener at Newton Academy only lasted three innings as the home team exploded for 13 runs in the first inning then added five more in the second for an 18-1 win. 

Three Patriot pitchers took to the circle and combined to issue 12 walks, seven hits and 10 earned runs. Aubrey Grey, who pitched the second inning, got the team’s lone strikeout. 

Kirksey Heard and Annabelle Brislin both had a hit, and Kelsey Perkins had a single and scored the team’s only run in the second inning when she scrambled home from third base during a wild pitch. 

The Patriots hosted Carroll Academy last night and are back playing on Friday hosting Wayne Academy at 1 p.m. 

Volleyball

Volleyball season opened over the weekend in the MHSAA Showcase in Jackson for Starkville High School and New Hope, and Caledonia got its season underway in a separate tournament on Saturday. 

Starkville took down Warren Central 2-0 to open its season on Friday, but was dealt back-to-back 0-2 losses by Hernando and Ocean Springs to end its play in the showcase. The Yellowjackets rebounded with a 3-1 win at Amory on Monday to improve to 2-2 on the season. Starkville played at Caledonia last night and heads to Northwest Rankin tomorrow for a 6 p.m. game.

Caledonia is off to a 3-1-1 start to its season after playing in the Bulldog Bash tournament held at New Albany on Saturday. 

The Cavaliers bested Hickory Flat 2-1 to open up the season, then tied a contest 1-1 with West Union. Back-to-back 2-0 victories over Corinth and Myrtle got Caledonia back in the win column, but the team closed out tournament play with a 2-0 loss to East Union. 

The Cavs played at Starkville yesterday and are back on the court at 6 p.m. tonight at Ripley.

New Hope is off to an 0-4 start to their 2025 campaign after dropping contests against Oak Grove (2-0), Our Lady Academy (2-0), Newton Academy (2-1) and Hancock (2-1). 

The Trojans took on Tupelo Tuesday and will host Starkville at 6:30 p.m. tonight.