Wilson Central Stuns Lady Owls, 7-2, With Six-Run Inning

Ooltewah Falls Into Loser's Bracket Final In Class AAA Softball

  • Friday, May 22, 2015
  • Larry Fleming
Wilson Central's Brooke Pfefferle steals second base against Ooltewah on Thursday night in Class AAA softball action. Lady Owls shortstop Tiera Lemon takes the throw as second baseman Shelby Sutton moves in to back up the play.
Wilson Central's Brooke Pfefferle steals second base against Ooltewah on Thursday night in Class AAA softball action. Lady Owls shortstop Tiera Lemon takes the throw as second baseman Shelby Sutton moves in to back up the play.
photo by Dennis Norwood

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Ooltewah was in good shape Thursday until it imploded in the sixth inning when Wilson Central scored six runs and went on to beat the Lady Owls, 7-2, in the TSSAA Spring Fling Class AAA softball winner’s bracket final.

A win would have advance the Lady Owls (38-8) into the championship game.

Instead, Ooltewah will have to get past Dickson County on Friday to get another crack at Wilson central (39-7).

“We didn’t play our best ball,” Ooltewah coach Jon Massey said in a classic understatement.

“(Friday) we have to put a bad game out of the way. We want to play three games and do the best we can.”

If the Lady Owls beat Dickson County, they would then take two from Wilson Central to achieve their ultimate season goal – capture their sixth state championship.

“No team is perfect,” center fielder Allie Jones said. “Whether it’s the regular season or state tournament. Sometimes you play a bad game and sometimes a really bad game. There’s no point losing sleep. We still get to play (Friday).”

The Lady Wildcats trailed 2-1 going into the sixth and rocked freshman pitching sensation Kayla Boseman, the defense was ragged and together looked like a perfect storm catastrophe.

Boseman hit Claire Smith and she stole second. Brooke Pfefferle lined out to third baseman Mabry Carpenter, who fired to second to double-up Smith.

One more out to end the inning.

Then everything went south for the Lady Owls.

Morgan Powell singled and Kathe Eakes single to right. Kayla Varner walked to load the bases.

Morgan Stokes broke Ooltewah’s heart with a three-run double to center field, giving the Lady Wildcats 4-2 advantage.

And the hits, six in the inning, just kept coming.

Kendall Tomlin singled and scored on second baseman Shelby Sutton’s error.

Shelby Woodard and Lily Bombard added run-scoring singles.

“That was very disappointing,” Boseman said. “I messed up some pitches, we made some errors and balls were dropped. On the three-run double the girl just hopped all over that pitch. I jammed some other hitters but they hit the ball and found holes.

“I still think we can come back because we did it in the district tournament and region. I think we can do in state.”

Wilson Central, which has never won a state softball title, took a 1-0 lead in the third when Smith reached on an infield hit, stole second. Pfefferle beat out an infield hit and started toward second. That created a throw from Aubie Collake to second and Smith ran home for the score.

Ooltewah responded an inning later.

Boseman lashed a leadoff single to left. A sacrifice bunt by Carpenter moved Boseman to second and she scored on Collake’s laser-shot double over left fielder Kayla Varner’s head.

Williams started the Lady Owls’ fifth with a double to right-center and stayed there while reliever Hannah Bodenhorn struck out Lemon – for the third time – and Sutton. Jones lobbed a pop down the left-field line and shortstop Pfefferle got a bead on the ball, but dropped it and Williams scored easily.

Little did they know, but that was all the scoring the Lady Owls managed.

Ooltewah had almost as many errors (4) as hits (5). Sutton had two singles.

“I hope we’ll see hitters adjust (Friday), which we didn’t do against their second pitcher (Bodenhorn) tonight,” Massey said. “I may me dead wrong, but I anticipate us playing well.

“We’re going to eat, go to bed and be ready to get after it (Friday).”

LINESCORE

Wilson Central                             001 006 0 – 7 10 2

Ooltewah                                        000 110 0 – 2 5 4

Powell, Bodenhorn (4) and Woodard; Boseman and Forrester.

(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)

 

 

Designated hitter Summer Williams smacked a run-scoring double in the fifth inning that gave Ooltewah a 2-1 lead over Wilson Central. The Lady Bulldogs exploded for six runs in the sixth to beat the Lady Owls, 7-2.
Designated hitter Summer Williams smacked a run-scoring double in the fifth inning that gave Ooltewah a 2-1 lead over Wilson Central. The Lady Bulldogs exploded for six runs in the sixth to beat the Lady Owls, 7-2.
photo by Dennis Norwood
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