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FROM STAFF REPORTS
Coach Ken Hardin and his Elizabethton Lady Cyclones traveled to Pigeon Forge to take part in a softball tournament during the school’s Spring Break and had to wait out some rain before taking the field for their first game.

During a brief respite from the rain, the Lady Cyclones took to the field to face off against Pikeville, Kentucky in a dandy of a high school softball contest as the Lady Cyclones broke a tie 3-3 game in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a hard-fought 7-4 win.

Pikeville struck first in the top of the first inning scoring two runs to take an early lead.

With the Lady Cyclones unable to punch anything across in the first two frames, the Kentucky team added two more runs to their side of the scoreboard in the top of the third inning to make it 4-0 heading to the bottom of the inning.

Elizabethton finally cracked the goose egg on their side of the scoreboard in their half of the third with one out.

Ember Jensen hit a hard ground ball that allowed the speedy shortstop to reach on an error. Maddie O’Quinn came up with a bunt single putting runners at first and second for the Lady Cyclones.

Hardin put in a double steal as both runners advanced a base. The move came into play as pitcher Madisun Pritchard put a fly ball into play in right field that allowed Jensen to score and O’Quinn to advance to third.

O’Quinn was on her horse as she came home to score on a wild pitch to make it 4-2 at the end of three complete.

Elizabethton held Pikeville scoreless in the top of the fourth before plating two more runs in the bottom of the frame to even things up at 4-all.

Leadoff batter Kenidy Harris was pegged by a pitch with Hannah Morgan coming in to run for Harris. After Pikeville retired Mollie Johnson on a pop fly, Cheyenne Poiroux stepped to the plate and delivered a double to right field that chased Morgan home with Poiroux advancing to third on the throw.

Freshman Emma O’Quinn stepped to the dish and put down a perfect bunt to the Pikeville third baseman which allowed Poiroux to come home to even the game.

The score stayed that way until the bottom half of the sixth inning when the Lady Cyclones threw a three-spot on the scoreboard to take control of the contest.

Once again the Lady Cyclone rally began with one out as Maely Ingram stroked a single to center field. Ingram swiped second base and took third when Jensen hit a ball to second base and reached once again thanks to an error.

The Lady Cyclones once again played small ball as Maddie O’Quinn put another bunt down toward third for a single scoring Ingram to make it 5-4 EHS.

Pritchard helped her own cause by tearing into a pitch and doubling into center field to bring home both O’Quinn and Jensen to give the Lady Cyclones the 7-4 lead which held up to the final out of the contest.

Aside from pitching the complete four-hit gem allowing the four runs while recording six strikeouts and walking one, Pritchard also had an outstanding day at the plate going 3-for-3 with three RBI’s.

Ingram and Maddie O’Quinn finished with a two-hit game each with Kallista DePrimo, Poiroux, and Emma O’Quinn collected one hit apiece.