Hoping to redeem what has been a disappointing season for the Waurika fast-pitch softball team, the Lady Eagles were to have begun play today in the Class A District Tournament at Ringling.
The first round game with Wilson was to have been played at noon today (Thursday). The loser was slated to face Ringling at 1:30 p.m. and the winner plays Ringling today at 3 p.m.
The double-elimination tournament will continue tonight and if only two teams remain, the championship game would be tonight if one of the teams has no losses.
An if necessary game is scheduled for Friday.
Last week the Lady Eagles dropped contests to Geronimo, 4-1, on Monday and to Velma-Alma, 12-5, last Thursday
The Lady Eagles scored in the top of the first against Geronimo as Gracie Walling singled. Hope Cummings also singled and Walling scored by stealing home to give Waurika a 1-0 lead.
The Lady Blue Jays picked up two runs in the bottom of the first as the first two runners reached on errors and eventually came around to score to give Geronimo a 2-1 advantage.
The game stayed at 2-1 until the bottom of the sixth inning. Three hits and two walks helped the Lady Blue Jays add two more runs to take a 4-1 advantage into the seventh inning.
In the top of the seventh, the Lady Eagles went down in order.
Five different players for Waurika had hits – Liberti Simmons, Faith Roberson, Walling, Cummings and Landry Forsyth.
Against Velma-Alma the Lady Eagles battled on nearly even terms with the Lady Comets until late in the game.
The Lady Comets got on the board first with a four-run uprising in the bottom of the first with the benefit of only two base hits.
The Lady Eagles answered in the top of the second with a pair of runs. Cummings singled and Forsyth singled and Cummings scored on a bases loaded walk by Grace Hill. Forsyth scored on an error and the Lady Eagles had trimmed the lead to 4-2.
V-A came back with a single run in the bottom of the second to increase the lead to 5-2.
Waurika narrowed the lead in the top of the third with a run after Walling reached on an error Forsyth got an RBI-single to put the deficit at 5-3.
The Lady Comets added to the lead in the bottom of the fourth with a run to put the score at 6-3.
In the top of the fifth, the Lady Eagles scored twice. Walling led off with a walk, Cummings singled and Forsyth singles to load the bases. Riley Howell was hit by a pitch to score Walling and Kinzie Taylor got an RBI-single to cut the Lady Comet lead to 6-5.
In the bottom of the fifth the Lady Comets scored three times taking advantage of two Lady Eagle errors, a walk and two doubles to extend the lead to 9-5.
Waurika could not cut into the deficit in the top of the sixth and V-A added three more runs in the bottom of the inning with a three singles and two Waurika errors.
The Lady Eagles could not score in the top of the seventh to end the game.
Forsyth was outstanding at the plate for the Lady Eagles going 3-for-4 with one run batted in. Cummings had two hits and scored two runs. Walling also scored a pair of runs for the Lady Eagles.
The Lady Eagles had seven hits total, but nine Waurika errors hampered the squad’s ability to stay with the Lady Comets, who had 10 hits and had only two errors in the game.
