Bottom of the order does it for De Queen

5A SOFTBALL

DE QUEEN 11, SYLVAN HILLS O

Once De Queen got to the bottom of its order, the hits started coming.

No. 8 batter Mallory Miller hit a home run for the Lady Leopards’ first hit with one out in the third innings, and ninth batter Sydney Sneed followed with a single leading to two more runs. Both reached base again in an eight- run fourth highlighted by Makala Jackson’s bases-loaded triple and freshman Reisa Bakenhus’s two- run home run, leading De Queen to an 11-0 rout of Sylvan Hills in Class 5A state softball tournament at Kimery Park.

Sylvan Hills pitched Callie Cavender allowed on a two-out walk in the first before Miller, De Queen’s lone senior, lined a home run to center field for the only run Lady Leopards pitcher Josie Vaught would need.

Bakenhus led off the foruth with a single, Vaught followed with a double and Bakenhus scored on Randee Tye’s groundout. Sydney and Carli Sneed both had RBI singles ahead of Jackson’s triple with Bakenhus’ home run capping the outburst.

Vaught held Sylvan Hills to three hits, striking out five without a walk.

VILONIA 4, GREENE COUNTY TECH 3

Trailing 3- 0 when play continued from Friday’s suspended game, Vilonia scored twice in the fourth on Skylar Lee’s two-out triple. A double play threatened a two-out, no out chance in the fifth, but Rachel Henson followed with a game-tying double.

Another two-out hit put the Lady Eagles ahead in the sixth. Morgan Gray led off with a single, and courtesy runner Callie Eary scored on Madison Daves’ double to left-center.

Vilonia pitcher Sydney Wader held the Lady Eagles to one hit in the last four innings. Courtney Barnes singled with one out in the seventh before Skylar Boyd grounded into a force play and Liz Gatlin, who homered in the first inning Friday, hit a fly ball to right.

WHITE HALL 3, BEEBE 1

Laura Graves, who had an RBI double in the first inning, threw a two-hitter for the Lady Bulldogs, striking out four — three in the last two innings. She retired nine of Beebe’s last 10 batters after Calah Hill reached on an error leading off the fifth. The Lady Badgers scored in the second on two walks and an error.

Haley Dinapoli had both Beebe hits, going 2 for 2 with a double and a walk. Hall went 2 for 3 for White Hall, which had seven hits. Beebe’s Ellie Reaves had nine strikeouts.

PARAGOULD 6, GREENBRIER 1

Claire Brown doubled and Peyton Carter tripled in Paragould’s two-run first, and the Lady Rams scored three times in the sixth to seal the victory.

Chase Nelson’s RBI double in the fourth game Paragould a 3-0 lead. Greenbrier scored an unearned run in the sixth off Carter before the lady Rams pulled away on Marcy Carter’s two-run homer and Kiana Cole’s run-scoring single. Katie Lomax led of the inning with a double.

Lomax went 2 for 2, Carter 2 for 3 and Cole and Braxton Burnside 2 for 4 for Paragould.

CLASS 3A REMATCH SET FROM 2014

HARRISON — The same two teams that played for the state title last year are heading back to the championship in Fayetteville after they claimed semfinal victories Saturday in the Class 3A state softball tournament on Cavender’s Field.

Harding Academy began the afternoon with a 4-2 victory over Benton Harmony Grove before defending state champion Bald Knob clobbered Genoa Central 10-0 in the second game.

Bald Knob edged Harding Academy 3-0 in the state championship last season after the Lady Wildcats defeated the Lady Bulldogs 10-3 two weeks prior in the 3A Region 2 Tournament title game.

In this year’s regional final, Bald Knob shut out Harding Adcademy 5-0.

The Haskell Harmony Grove Lady Cardinals, the third seed from Region, almost gave the Lady Wildcats a scare in Saturday’s first semifinal, waiting until the last two innings before scoring but still fell a couple of runs short.

Harding Academy starter gave up six hits to the Lady Cardinals but four of those came in the sixth and seventh innings. The Lady Wildcats were up 4-0 going into the top of the sixth inning when Faith Otts led off with a single and scored on a double by LJ Helmich to get Harmony Grove on the board. Rachel Kesterson led off the top of the seventh with a solo home run and Otts doubled with two outs, but was left stranded as Berry got the final out on a fly ball to center.

The Lady Wildcats got all four of their runs via the long ball. Mary Mills Lochala hit two solo home runs in the third and fifth innings, while Berry smacked a two- run home run in the third.

Berry finished with 10 strikeouts to earn her third victory of the tourney.

Otts had three of Harmony Grove’s six hits.

In another Class 3A state softball game Saturday, Bald

Knob scored all of its runs in the first three innings and finished with 12 hits for the game for a 10-0 victory over Genoa

Central. Junior pitcher Autumn Humes did her part keeping the Lady Dragons off the bases as she struck out 14 of the 18 batters she faced, only giving up two hits. Just one of the three baserunners got as far as second base. Lindsey Duncan, Hannah Fisher and Brooke Mason each had three hits for Bald Knob while Janna Smith had two. Fisher and Smith each hit a home run. Brianna Morton and Callie Beckham hit the two singles for Genoa Central.