MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Berry softball is still dancing after a thriller in the loser's bracket with host team Huntingdon, in a 4-3 victory.
Hannah Gore started in the circle once again for the Vikings, this time with the 2024 season on the line. She took care of things in the first inning and her team backed her with a run in the bottom of the first.
Two singles from
Katie White and
Morgan Frye brought
Lauren Cothern up to bat and she laid a perfect sacrifice bunt to advance the two into scoring position.
Shelby Daniel earned her first of two RBIs of the game with a single up the middle to take the 1-0 Viking lead.
Both defenses held strong with a quick second inning, but the Hawks found two runs in the third to take the lead with four hits that included a double.
Now with Huntingdon up 2-1, Berry almost repeated the first inning events with singles from White and Frye and a bunt from Cother that this time landed her on base.
Ava Fouts sacrifice fly tied up the game at two.
Huntingdon struck back with their own sacrifice fly in the top of the inning to regain their one run advantage now with
Casey Holloway in the circle for Berry.
The sixth inning determined all with the Vikings showcasing why they are the sixth ranked team in the nation both defensively and offensively.
At the plate, Daniel and Fouts gained their second RBIs bringing in runners off a single and triple, respectively to own the game and take over at 4-3.
After gaining the lead, the Vikings took the field and after a walk and two errors, Berry found themselves in a tight spot with no outs and the bases loaded.
Holloway was backed by her infield with Daniel and
Anna Jackson tagging out at home and
Katie Parker and Jackson repeating it with the next batter for an anxiety filled two outs.Â
With bases still loaded, Holloway got the next batter to pop up and Berry somehow held the roughest inning of the season to no runs.
Unable to do any more damage offensively, the top of the seventh was where the Vikings won it, taking down the second seed in the Regional and host team.
Staying alive in the tournament with one loss, Berry took the field thirty minutes later for another elimination game against Transylvania where they shot up quick 4-0, but with inclement weather impairing play, the game has been paused and will resume tomorrow at 1:00 PM ET.
Following the elimination game, the Championship game will take place at 3:00 PM ET featuring the winner of Game Five and Maryville College. The if necessary game will follow at 5:30 PM ET.
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