ALL-STAR SPORTS WEEK: South topples North in softball in a doubleheader slugfest
Wetumpka pitcher Lalah Culpepper was the winning pitcher in the second game of the North-South All-Star softball game at Lagoon Park on Wednesday. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
After striking out in her first at-bat of Wednesday’s Alabama All-Stars Sports Week softball game at Lagoon Park, St. James senior Kaitlyn Hudson recovered with a single and a walk in the first game of a doubleheader and another single in the second game.
“I definitely wanted to come back from that (strikeout), try and help score so we could win the game,” Hudson said.
She got her wish, along with some help from her teammates, as the South scored 24 runs on 24 hits to force a 13-13 tie in the first game and an 11-10 win in the second to secure just their second win in Alabama All-Stars Sports Week.
Hudson, a center fielder who helped the Trojans win the 3A state championship two months ago with the second highest batting average on the team, was one of nine players with multiple hits on Wednesday, playing three innings in each game as the South’s right fielder.
“It was fun for sure,” she said. “I wanted to make sure I pulled for my team and tried to keep everything in front of me, catch all the pop flies, make all the routine plays.”
In the first game, the South scored four runs in the fourth and five runs in the sixth but couldn’t hold the lead as the North scored seven runs in the seventh inning.
In the top of the seventh, North MVP Braylynn Pope hit a three-run home run to left off of reliever Jada Newman to give the North a 13-11 lead.
In the bottom of the seventh, Pike Road’s Addison Belyeu drew a leadoff walk and Briley Bolden followed with a home run to left to tie the game, but North starter Autumn Ingle returned to the game in relief and stranded a runner at third base to preserve the 13-13 tie.
In the second game, the South scored eight runs in the first inning and held on for the remainder of the game.
Mylee Stagner and Khloe Broadwater had RBI singles and Kayleigh Jackson followed with a bases-loaded walk for a 3-0 lead. South MVP Brook McGowin, who had a three-run double in the first game, drove in two more runs with a single past third for a 5-0 lead.
A wild pitch and RBI doubles by Bolden and Mallory Earp made it 8-0.
The South, who had just Newman and Wetumpka’s Lalah Culpepper in the circle, got an inspiring relief performance over the final five innings from Culpepper. But just as Culpepper started to fade in the late innings of the first game, the North got four runs in the bottom of the seventh to make it 11-10 before Culpepper enticed a popup to second to end the game with the game-tying run on third.
The South entered the final at-bat with an 11-6 lead after Ava Milton blasted a 1-1 pitch over the left field fence for a two-run home run and a five-run lead which evaporated in the bottom half of the inning.
The South’s narrow win left the North clinging to a one-game lead (29-28-2) in the series.
“It’s been a great experience,” Hudson said. “It’s very good exposure, playing with different girls, all the different skill levels. It was a lot of fun. It was a very cool experience.”
30th ALABAMA ALL-STARS SPORTS WEEK
Monday’s results
Girls’ Golf: North 44.5, South 45.5 (North girls lead series 5-2)
Boys’ Golf: North 41.5, South 48.5 (North boys lead series 6-1)
Baseball: North 5-3, South 1-7, (North boys lead series 26-19-5)
Tuesday’s results
Girls’ Cross Country: North 17, South 44 (North girls lead series 7-2)
Boys’ Cross Country: North 24, South 32 (North boys lead series 7-2)
Girls’ Tennis: North 8, South 1 (North girls lead series 5-1)
Boys’ Tennis: North 7, South 2 (North boys lead series 5-1)
Girls’ Basketball: North 71, South 63 (North leads series 25-4)
Boys’ Basketball: North 74, South 67 (North leads series 52-31)
Wednesday’s results
Softball: South 13-11, North 13-10 (North leads series 29-28-2)
Girls’ Soccer: South 2, North 0 (North leads series 19-5-1)
Boys’ Soccer: South 2, North 2 (North leads series 19-4-2)
Thursday
Volleyball, Multiplex at Cramton Bowl, 2 p.m.