The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Chief Sports Editor

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THE St Augustine’s College Big Red Machine snatched a 1-0 lead in their respective senior and junior girls’ best-of-three softball championship series over the Queen’s College Comets on Tuesday at Freedom Farm.

Game two in both series will be played on Thursday. If necessary, the third and deciding games will be played on Friday. 

Senior girls

Big Red Machine 9, Comets 3: St Augustine’s College jumped out to an early lead, scoring five consecutive runs in the first inning as Carliah Thompson started the rally that was ended by Malaya ‘Pratt.

Alphanique Dean scored the first run for Queen’s College in the bottom of the first inning.

SAC put another run on the board in the third to stay ahead. 

The Comets, in their attempt to cut into the deficit, scored their second run in the third, but left two runners stranded on base as winning pitcher Madison Dillett struck out the third batter.

For good measure, with two runners on third and second, the Big Red Machine sent them both home on a play that got Dillett out trying to stretch a hit into a double. They ended up leaving two more runners on base.

Then in the fifth, Ahnae Smith, who started at shortstop, came in relief for starting pitcher Lakrystal Moncur, helped the Comets turn a double play, but SAC still managed to get another insurance run before the third out.

Smith gave the Comets hope in the bottom of the fifth when, with two outs, she scored on Parris Lowe’s RBI single. Romalia Hanna was then hit by a pitch, but SAC got the final out at first to end the game. 

Junior girls

Big Red Machine 10, Comets 9: Just when Queen’s College thought they had it wrapped up, St Augustin’s College went to their bags of tricks and a couple of substitutions at the plate that resulted in three runs for a come-from-behind walk-off victory.

Down 9-7 going into the bottom of the fifth inning, SAC brought in Layla Pennerman to replace T’ljah Higgs at the plate with one out and a runner on base.

Pennerman, the smaller girl in the lineup, drew a walk and SAC made another key ub with pinch hitter Kaylia Dean getting on to load the bases. 

With two outs, Japheah McKenzie up to bat and on an infield hit, the Comets made an errant throw at the plate as the Big Red Machine rolled home with two runs to secure game one.

“I thought we would have come back in the fourth inning, but unfortunately that didn’t happen,” said Jason Saunders, one of SAC’s coaches.

“But I had no doubt in my mind that these girls are better than they demonstrated today. As a matter of fact, I made a statement that we will not play this poorly again. The way we played is not indicative of how good we are.”

SAC got the runs in the first, there in the second and one more in the fourth before they pulled it off in dramatic fashion in the fifth.

QC responded with two runs in the second, two in the third and surged ahead with five in the fourth, but the Comets couldn’t hold onto the lead.

J’Lynn  Bain, mixing up her windmill and lob pitches, got the win for SAC. Mekaya Rahming, who performed just as well on the other side of the field, was tagged with the loss for QC.

“We had the game to win, but our batting failed us today and errors in the last inning,” said Comets’ head coach Andra Hobbs. “In game two, our bats have to come alive.”