LAGOON BASH: Clarke Prep wins Lagoon softball tourney

By TIM GAYLE

Macon East Academy couldn’t overcome an error-filled inning in the championship game of the inaugural Lagoon Park Bash, losing to Clarke Prep 3-2 at Lagoon Park Softball Complex on Saturday night.

The tournament, a collection of some of the best Alabama Independent School Association teams in the state, featured a single-elimination bracket on the final day of competition and one of the state’s top AA programs, Macon East, reached the finals against one of the state’s top AAA programs, Clarke Prep.

“I think a lot of people enjoyed it,” said the tournament director, Macon East coach Glynn Lott. “I think we’ll have more teams sign up next year. It was disappointing that we had four teams drop out this year. Everybody was guaranteed four games and didn’t play the same teams. You’d play five games before you played the same team twice and that was the exciting part for us, getting to play a lot of different people on these fields that you play your state tournament on.”

The tournament was planning on 16 teams in four pools advancing to two single-elimination brackets, but wound up with 12 teams in three pools that all advanced to single-elimination play on Saturday. Macon East defeated Patrician 7-1, Hooper 7-5 and Abbeville Christian 3-1 in pool play, while Clarke Prep defeated Edgewood 2-0, Pike Liberal Arts 9-5 and Chambers 8-4.

In single-elimination play, Macon East defeated Pike Liberal Arts, Glenwood beat Chambers, Clarke Prep defeated Lakeside and Hooper defeated Edgewood to advance to the semifinals. Macon East defeated Glenwood 6-2 to advance to the championship game, while Clarke Prep shut out Hooper 6-0.   

“We didn’t win the tournament, but we got a lot better by playing in it in a lot of different aspects,” Lott said. “Our pitching was great today. It hasn’t been very consistent but it was today. I thought we got better as a team.”

Taylor McKinney was outstanding in the circle, allowing no earned runs in the final two games. At the plate, the Macon East senior went 6 for 9 in 17 plate appearances with two home runs and three RBIs. She was intentionally walked seven times, including once in the championship game. 

Macon East (18-7) also got good offensive performances from Breann Morrison, who went 5 for 10 in the tournament; Kadence Ward, who went 7 for 15; Kylee Smith, who went 6 for 14; and Devyn Debardelaben, who went 5 for 13 with five RBIs. 

The Knights took a 2-0 lead in the first off of Clarke Prep starter Reanna Johnson, with Debardelaben driving in McKinney for the game’s first run and Morrison following with a chopper through the right side of the infield that scored Debardelaben. 

Avery Harrell entered the circle in the second inning for the Gators and held Macon East to one hit the rest of the way, a single by Morrison in the fourth. Harrell faced just 14 batters in the final four innings, striking out 10 while giving up a single to Morrison, intentionally walking McKinney, getting McKinney to pop up in the third and Hannah Parker to ground out in the second.

“She’s good,” Lott said. “And at night, it’s a whole different game. The ball looks faster. But she moves the ball around, throws a drop curve and a rise, so you’ve got to guess a little bit with her. We didn’t fare too well.”

McKinney was impressive as well, but took the loss after the Knights made three errors in the fourth. Kerri Steadham led off with a line drive to the fence bounced out of center fielder Georgia Blaze’s glove. Grace Davis followed with a single and Cassidy VanWinkle bounced a grounder to shortstop Kylee Smith that the sophomore threw to third base for the force out.

The low throw bounced out of Debardelaben’s glove as Steadham slid into base to load the bases. Johnson was hit by a pitch from McKinney to force in a run, but Kalli Steadham followed with a chopper to Debardelaben that forced out Davis at the plate. Maggie Childs then bounced a pitch back to McKinney that she threw to the plate for the second out, but catcher Alyssa Clark’s relay to first was high and two more runs scored when Parker couldn’t come up with the throw.

“We gave up three errors,” Lott said. “Make one of them, or even two, and you’re probably tied at the worst. But we had a chance at the end with runners on and didn’t get it done.”

Morrison singled in the fourth and McKinney was intentionally walked in the fifth, but the potential game-tying runs were stranded with strikeouts.