MCKEE — Aubrie Messer and Emmie Rice delivered clutch seventh-inning hits Thursday as South Laurel pulled away late to defeat North Laurel, 8-3, in semifinal action of the 13th Region Fastpitch Tournament at Jackson County.
Messer finished with two hits and three RBI, including a two-run single during South Laurel’s six-run seventh inning that broke open the game. Rice followed with a two-run homer later in the inning to help seal the victory.
“We had a great effort from Kenzie tonight,” South Laurel coach Carly Mink said. “She had to battle tonight a very good lineup. We were solid behind her defensively and made the plays when they put it in play.
“Offensively, we got off to a great start in the top of first and were able to put two runs up,” she added. “Even though we were not able to put any runs on the board in the second through the sixth, we had a lot of lengthy at bats that led to our success in the seventh.
“I can’t say enough about the at-bats in the 7th inning,” Mink continued. “Kenzie, Lexi, Aubrie, and Kiley had big hits and Emmie had a huge swing to increase our lead.”
Kenzie Williams also turned in a strong performance for the Lady Cardinals, going 2-for-4 with an RBI while Lexi Messer added a hit, RBI and drew the bases-loaded walk that produced the game’s first run.
South Laurel (35-5) grabbed a 2-0 lead in the opening inning after Morgan Jackson scored on a bases-loaded walk by Lexi Messer before Aubrie Messer lifted a sacrifice fly to score Mia Bowling.
North Laurel (28-7) battled back and tied the game in the fifth inning thanks to a two-run homer from Katie Sams.
The game remained deadlocked until the seventh when Bailey Frazier scored on a Williams’ single to put South ahead for good. Lexi Messer followed with an RBI single before Aubrie Messer’s two-run hit stretched the lead to 6-2. Rice then blasted a two-run homer to cap the inning.
Emma Carl homered in the bottom of the seventh for North Laurel and finished 2-for-4 with an RBI. Sams also homered and drove in two runs while Bella Finley and Tessa Monhollen each added hits.
Williams earned the win in the pitcher’s circle for South Laurel after striking out 13 while allowing three runs on six hits.
