Let’s take two
Lady Mavs win twice Friday
Lady Mav Audrey Lankford hustles down the line to first for a single last Friday. (photo:Collin Riggs )
Anderson County struggled in the first three innings, keeping William Blount to three runs total across the three innings, but struggling at the plate.
It wasn’t until the fourth inning that the Lady Mavs finally got their first run, following it up with two more in the fifth inning to put the score at 3-3.
When the Lady Governors scored one more home run at the bottom of the sixth, the Mavs entered the seventh inning needing to score – and they certainly did.
Makenzie Henderson’s home run in the seventh gave the team a much-needed confidence boost that ultimately carried them to six total runs in the inning , putting the score at 9-4 and giving them the lead for the first time.
They only had to hold the Lady Governors for the second half of the inning.
The Mavs allowed only one base runner in the final inning, sealing the second win.
Lea Elkins and Reese Simpson both pitched for the Lady Mavs in the game against the Governors, with Elkins managing three strikeouts and seven first-pitch strikes, while Simpson finished with a single strikeout.
Simpson finished with a WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) of 0.67, while Elkins finished with a WHIP of 0.75.
Audrey Lankford led the team on hits with two, as well as two RBI and three quality at-bats.
In the game against Carter, Hannah Hooks led on hits with three and two RBI, followed by Jade Richards.
Allen Russell, the head coach of the Lady Mavs, said he was proud of the team.
“We’ve had a rough couple of games leading up to this,” he said. “We’ve not played our best, and we’ve let teams off the hook. I didn’t want us to get that mindset of ‘Oh crap, we’re going to get beat again,’ so it was fantastic to be down a run and have our last at-bat and come back and score so well. They came out, hit bunts, had smart base-running. I’m very proud of them. The fact that they were mentally able to overcome that and do what they needed to do was fantastic.”
Russell specifically mentioned Henderson as a hard-hitter for both games, but said the whole team is coming together as a batting force.
“Makenzie Henderson has been ripping it all day with two home runs, one against Carter, and one against William Blount,” he said. “Right now, she’s our hot stick. They walked her intentionally at the end because they know she’s hitting fantastic.
“Once everyone else realizes that not everyone will hit the ball like Makenzie, though, they will have to hit ground balls like they did to get runs, and manufacture runs. If they do that and execute offensively, then we’re going to be tough.”