Laci Gobble K-O’s West Virginia, Tennessee advance in Southeast regional

Published 2:08 pm Tuesday, July 25, 2023

By C.Y. Peters

     T.A. Dugger’s Laci Gobble, pitching for the Unicoi County team representing Tennessee in the Girls Little League Southeast Regional, stuck out 10 batters leading her team to a 3-1 win over West Virginia in Warren-Robbins Georgia on Monday.

     West Virginia got on the scoreboard first when the lead-off batter Lilly Flemming singled and scored when Ayla Vance tripled to take a 1-0 lead.  Tennessee would load the bases in the second inning, Ayla Horney, Deanna Gill and Willow Bennett would all reach base.  No one could reach home; a double play by West Virginia would end the inning, still in the lead. In the fourth, Tennessee would again get runners in scoring position with Abigail Peterson and Emma Grace Anders reaching base, but again could not cross home plate.

     From the mound, Gobble was keeping West Virginia in tack, striking out two batters per inning. Third baseman Lucy Jo Linville was doing her part, making play after play, throwing runners out at first. In the fifth inning, Tennessee bats come alive and the Mountaineers begin making errors.  With two outs, Horney would reach base, Hanson worked a bases loaded walk on 11 pitches – Nasser hit a single off first base bag on 10 pitches at bat to score Nuckols and Van Tassell.  Then Linville singled to drive in Hanson, and when the game ended, Tennessee came back and won 3-1.  Gobble struck out 10-batters, and Unicoi made no errors in the game.

Tennessee advanced to play Alabama at 3 pm today.