Fans were packing the stands an hour early to see Game 2 of the Regional Softball Playoffs between the Forney Lady Jackrabbits and the Ennis Lady Lions. The Lady Jackrabbits had an amazing comeback win in Thursday night's game and were ready to set the pace in the 1st inning.
Fans were packing the stands an hour early to see Game 2 of the Regional Softball Playoffs between the Forney Lady Jackrabbits and the Ennis Lady Lions. The Lady Jackrabbits had an amazing comeback win in Thursday night's game and were ready to set the pace in the 1st inning.
The Ennis Lady Lions scored a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the 1st inning and the Lady Jackrabbits would not let it go unanswered. With #21 Jasmine Lusk and #11 Taylor Penn on base, #6 Brooke McCarroll smashed one out of the park, bringing the score to 3-1.
Another lead change came in the top of the 2nd inning, with 4 runs brought in by the Lady Lions. The Lady Jackrabbits struggled to get on base. Just when Lady Jackrabbits thought they could score a run on a huge hit into deep left field, the outfielder made an amazing throw all the way to home plate, ending the 2nd inning.
The score was now 5-3 with the Lady Lions in the lead going into the 3rd inning. Forney was able to stop the Lions in their tracks and prevent them from scoring in the top of the 3rd. Then came the next lead change with another home run from Brooke McCarroll bouncing off the scoreboard. The roars from the crowd and dugout were deafening as Brooke rounded 3rd and into the arms of her team at home plate. The 3rd inning ended with the Lady Jackrabbits in the lead, 7-5.
The 4th inning was the only scoreless inning, but not uneventful. With a runner on second, Brooke McCarroll was up to bat. The Ennis Lady Lions pitcher was instructed to walk the batter to avoid another home run, this strategy paid off for the Lions as the inning quickly came to an end.
With the theatrics of the 4th inning and 3 quick scored runs by the Lady Lions the crowd was definitely getting restless. The bases were loaded when a confusing call was made by the umpire after a Lady Lion batter was struck by a pitch from #1 Allison Brown, sparking uproar in the crowd. One fan was ejected from the game and the call was explained to the coaches. Being that there were already 3 balls, whether the ball struck the batter or not, she would have walked, forcing another run. The Lady Lions went on to score 7 runs in the 5th inning to 0 from the Lady Jackrabbits.
The 6th inning ended with the Lady Jackrabbits scoring 2 runs and shutting out the Lions. The crowd was rallying, hoping for another comeback win. Shutting the Lions out again in the top of the 7th, it was up to the Lady Jackrabbits to score 3 or more runs to continue play or win the game. The Lady Lions' defense seemed to have lost steam like the previous game in the 7th, and allowed two consecutive errors, 2 stolen bases, and another run from the Jackrabbits. The score was now 12-10 with the Lady Lions in the lead. An upsetting fly ball into center field ended the game where it sat, 12-10. The Ennis Lady Lions tied the 3 game series up, 1-1.
Coach Eric Montgomery stated he is very confident the ladies can wrap up the series and said, “Hopefully it won't be a slow pitch game, our pitchers are tired, their pitchers are tired, we've had a long season being in the playoffs.” Allison Brook, the pitcher for the Lady Jackrabbits, is a sophomore at Forney High School and is still a very young athlete. She “dug deep”, as Eric Montgomery said in the 7th inning, to find those last strikes it took to prevent the Lady Lions from scoring any more runs in the 7th.
Steve Whiffen, Principal of Forney High School, said, “I am confident and excited for tomorrows game. You take away the 5th inning and the game is ours. The team has great senior leadership and strong underclassmen. They are emotionally intelligent young ladies, which helps them to work together well, and continually lift each other up.
The Forney Lady Jackrabbits will be up bright and early warming up and getting ready for the final game of the series in Red Oak, Texas. Game 3 will be Saturday, May 26, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. Red Oak High School is located at 156 Louise Ritter Blvd, Red Oak, Texas.
Game photos provided by Big Shots Photography.