DUNLAP, Tenn. - With the way Brooklyn Girdley was pitching, and how strong the defense was behind her, the win for Sequatchie County's softball team was pretty well secured after the first inning. The insurance runs that came late provided enough to claim the tiebreaker over rival Bledsoe County and give the Lady Indians the regular-season District 7-AA title and the top seed for next week's district tournament.
Sequatchie County scored three runs in the first, then added another in the fifth and two more in the sixth for a 6-0 win over Bledsoe County, which had won the first meeting 3-0. With the tiebreaker being run differential between the two teams, those three late-inning runs give the Lady Indians the top seed.
"We're hitting the ball a lot better than we were to start the season, and that was the difference from the first time we played," Lady Indians coach Courtney Stewart said. "The first time we played them we hit it pretty good, but it seemed like everything was right at them and they made a lot of plays.
"We've got good hitters up and down the lineup, and we got big hits from just about everyone today. Having so many hitters you know you can count on is a good problem to have."
Sequatchie County (29-6, 9-1) had 10 hits, getting a 3-for-4 day from Madi Presto, who drove in two and scored twice, and two more hits by Meredith Mitchell, including a triple. Mitchell also scored twice, while Emily Dagnan had an RBI double and Ashley Moffitt plated a run on a fielder's choice.
The Lady Indians had also beaten Bledsoe in a tournament game earlier this season, but that does not count in the district standings.
Girdley improved to 17-4, giving up just three hits. She struck out only three, but the Lady Indians played solid defense behind her to keep Bledsoe from ever threatening.
"We just weren't the same team today and the frustrating thing is I don't know why," Bledsoe coach Jadryen Anderson said. "We didn't hit the ball, we made a ton of mistakes and errors and you just can't help a good team like that."