Lady Panthers’ softball run comes to a close in Columbus

Ridgeland’s first appearance in state’s Elite Eight since 2003 couldn’t have started out any better.

Unfortunately, an opening win over second-ranked Marist turned out to be as good as it got for the Lady Panthers.

Ridgeland’s 3-1 win over the War Eagles was the only victory the Black-and-White would record as they were sent back home with back-to-back losses to No. 1-ranked NorthsideColumbus and No. 5-ranked Chapel Hill.

The Lady Panthers fell behind 1-0 to Marist after one inning, but Ridgeland would get RBI-hits by Grayson James and Ciera Foster in the top of the second to give their team a 2-1 lead.

Ridgeland’s final run would come in the top of the seventh when Cortney Mooneyham singled and ended up at third on a Marist error. Haley Walker would come through with a pinch hit RBI-single to give the Lady Panthers an insurance run.

Morgan Crawford would finish off the complete game a halfinning later. She picked up the win, allowing seven hits and one walk with two strikeouts. The run she allowed was earned.

But in the winners’ bracket semifinal late Friday morning, Ridgeland ran up against Northside and ace pitcher Hannah George, who will pitch next year at North Carolina. George would allow just three hits and two walks with nine strikeouts in a 3-1 win.

Ridgeland’s lone run was unearned and came on a Northside error in the sixth. Allison Wallin took the loss. She gave up eight hits and just one walk and all three runs she allowed were earned. She finished with five strikeouts.

That put them in an elimination game against Chapel Hill Friday afternoon and the Lady Panthers from Douglasville led 3-0 after one inning and 5-0 after three before claiming an 8-0 win in six innings.

Crawford threw 5.2 innings in the loss, giving up just three earned runs as Ridgeland committed three errors in the game. She had three strikeouts.

Junior shortstop Haley Sandridge had a big weekend at the plate for the Lady Panthers. She went 6 for 9 (.667) with a double, a run scored, a walk and a stolen base. She had four singles against Marist, a single against Northside and ripped a double for Ridgeland’s only hit against Chapel Hill.

Ridgeland finished the year with a 23-9 overall record.

“I’m very pleased,” head coach Richie Wood said. “We won the region (regular season) title and the region tournament for the first time ever, from what I understand. I thought we had a very strong team this year. Even in the loss against Northside, we were just a hit away a couple of times. We just couldn’t get that one hit.”

Wood said he and the Ridgeland softball program would miss their three seniors.

“I’m proud of all three of them and all three are going to be very tough to replace,” he added. “Allison did a lot of the pitching for the past four years. Morgan came in and really helped us out for the last two and Cortney has been behind the plate for the last three years. She knew what I wanted out there and now I have to find another catcher to be the leader for me.

“But we have the foundation for a good team next year. Hailey Carroll will have to step up and fill a role as a main pitcher, but she got her first varsity start this year against a Mill Creek team that finished as the state runner-up in Class 7A and held her own pretty well.”