Gordon Lee's Tiffany Holland swings at a pitch against Dade County Thursday at Gordon Lee High School.CHICKAMAUGA, Ga. -- In case anyone needed a reminder of the strength of the Gordon Lee High School softball team, Thursday's 18-3 dismantling of Region 7-AA foe Dade County should suffice.
The top-ranked Lady Trojans (22-4, 11-0) pounded out 12 hits against three Dade pitchers in the three-inning game, including a 13-run first inning in which 16 batters came to the plate. Not surprisingly, coach Dana Mull was pleased with the production as the postseason nears.
"We've kind of struggled with putting hits together recently, so that was nice to string some together today throughout the lineup," she said. "We're a team that has to manufacture runs, so it's nice to get a day like today. We really need to go into next week building on what we're doing.
"We're far from where we need to be, and it's time to get there. With our tournament coming up, we still haven't hit our stride."
Leadoff batter Tiffany Holland, already batting .558, was 4-for-4 on senior night, including a bunt double. The four-year starter said the team is getting close to reaching its potential.
"We're communicating a whole lot better and we're on our way to making another long run at state," she said. "At the beginning I wasn't sure but now I'm confident. This team stands near the top, along with the team my freshman year. We're still getting there but I feel we can do it."
Dade (9-15, 6-4) actually took a 1-0 lead in the first when Sydney Poston singled and eventually scored on a passed ball, but by the time the Lady Wolverines batted next they were down 12 and just looking to extend the game.
Among the first-inning highlights for Gordon Lee was a two-run double by Courtland Middleton and a grand slam from Shay Wooten. The bats exrupted again to end it in the third after Autumn Smith's two-run double in the top half brought Dade within 10. The Lady Trojans scored five times, including a two-run single from Melissa Duran, and ended it on Reagan Brown's RBI single.
Addi Taylor and Middleton had two hits each for Gordon Lee, which holds a one-game lead over Armuchee with one week left in the regular season.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296.