COLUMBUS —
The hard work Trae Embry and the Neshoba Central High School slow-pitch softball team started in July paid off Tuesday night.
The former Eupora High School coach arrived in Philadelphia focused on getting the Rockets to hit the ball to the right side of the field.
“If you hit behind runners in slow-pitch softball you score runs,” Embry said. “They bought into it.”
Neshoba Central hit the ball behind — and above — its baserunners to the tune of four home runs that helped it defeat defending Class 5A State champion New Hope 15-13 in game three of their best-of-three North State championship series at Falcon Field.
“This is 195 feet (to right field). Our field is 225 or 235 (feet),” Embry said. “The air is thin. I couldn’t tell you how many home runs we hit.”
Neshoba Central hit four home runs in the decisive game, all to right field or right-center field. Katlyn Duke, Jesse Hennington, Ali Pike, and Meshay Jimmie hit home runs to help the Rockets, who swept New Hope in the regular season, build a 12-2 lead.
Duke was 5-for-5 to lead the 19-hit attack in game three. The left-center
fielder said Neshoba Central has worked all season on hitting the ball behind runners at every field. It just worked out that the strategy paid off in bigger dividends Tuesday night.
“We just wanted to hit basehits, and if it goes, it goes,” Duke said.
Neshoba Central (25-5) will play Wayne County for the Class 5A state title Saturday at Freedom Ridge Park in Ridgeland.
New Hope, which had won five consecutive state titles in a row, ended its season at 26-7.
New Hope rallied to win Game 1 12-11 by scoring two runs in the bottom of the seventh and one run in the bottom of the eighth. Neshoba Central rallied from a 12-3 deficit for a 13-12 victory in Game 2. The Rockets used a nine-run fifth inning in which they had six hits.
Pike, Peebles, and Miranda Crenshaw hit home runs in the first two games. Pike’s and Peebles’ home runs were to right field.
New Hope rallied from a 12-2 deficit by scoring six runs. Neshoba Central answered with three runs in the top of the seventh to give it the cushion it needed in the bottom half of the inning. New Hope’s first six batters reached, including leadoff hitter Lauren Holifield, who was intentionally walked all five plate appearances, and No. 2 batter D.J. Sanders, who was intentionally walked four times. She hit a two-run home run in her first at-bat. Kasey Stanfield’s two-run double and Erin Stanfield helped New Hope creep to 15-12. But the Lady Trojans plated just one more run thanks to a sacrifice fly. Second baseman Maggie Peebles caught a line drive for the second out and third baseman Madalyn McMahon fielded a groundball behind third base and then moved forward to tag the runner from second base who broke shortly after contact. The out triggered a celebration that was sure to last all the way home.
“We were ready for game three,” Duke said. “We were pumped we knew it was do or die, and we were going to do.”
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