Thanks to last week’s daily rains Bryan County and Richmond Hill softball teams will probably feel like they’re starting the season all over again this week. Assuming the weather cooperates.
Both teams picked up region wins at the beginning of last week only to see their schedules disrupted by the weather.
The Wildcats (4-5, 1-0) got a game-winning triple from senior catcher Kamdyn Richbourg to beat Camden County, 4-3, in their Region 1-7A opener at Wildcats Field on Tuesday but their scheduled doubleheader at Camden for Thursday was rained out. They were rescheduled to play Wednesday of this week.
Bryan County (6-2, 2-0) saw its Region 3A-DI game with Claxton end before it could work up a sweat as it coasted to a 15-0 win in a game called after three innings due to the mercy rule.
Following its twin-bill at Camden the Wildcats were scheduled to play Effingham County at home on Thursday. Richmond Hill’s next home game will be Sept. 22 when it plays Valdosta in a doubleheader starting at 4 p.m.
The scheduling impasse no doubt has Bryan County coach Jason Roundtree on edge concerning his team’s hitting.
The Redskins, ranked No. 10 in the latest Class A DI rankings, had gotten off to a slow start at the plate but had shown signs of coming alive when it banged out nine hits in two innings against Richmond Hill only to have the game called in the top of the fourth and leading 7-0.
“That’s probably the best we’ve hit the ball this year,” Roundtree said. “We’ll hit the way I think we should. There’s no doubt in my mind about that.”
Bryan County followed that with 11 hits against Metter in a 6-2 region win and then split a doubleheader with No. 8 DII ranked Schley County, winning the opener 8-5 and dropping the nightcap, 1-0.
Mckenzie Mobley and Alex Robertson had three hits each in the first game with Mobley driving in three runs.
Then came the beatdown of Claxton behind a 14-hit outburst. Mobley had three hits as did freshman Liz Harvey while Bekah Johnson added two. Mobley, drove in five runs and leads the Redskins in RBI with 12.
The rest of the week was a wash. Bryan County was at Calvary on Thursday and led 2-0 when lightning and rain came with Calvary batting in the bottom of the first.
Mobley, who played two games last year before missing the rest of the season, has given the Redskins lineup a real shot in the arm. An all-state shortstop as a sophomore she is hitting .448 and leads the team in hits with 12.
Johnson is hitting .444 while Harvey is at .375 and each has 12 hits. Skylar Lee is batting .385, Joyner .345 and Alex Robertson is hitting .538 as a spot starter (7-13).
Richmond Hill’s win over Camden County was a big shot in the arm as it jumped out to a 3-0 lead only to have the visiting Wildcats put up three runs in the fifth to knot the score.
The Wildcats scored two in the first on an RBI double by Lucy Tuttle followed by Brooklyn Meyer’s single. In the second Tuttle reached on a three-base error with two out and scored on Aliya Williams’ single.
After Camden tied it freshman Bria Milledge worked her way out of the jam and Richbourg made her a winner when she brought home Williams who had been hit by a pitch.
Abby Laidler leads the Wildcats at the plate with a .458 average while Milledge has been a pleasant surprise with a 4-2 mark. Richbourg is the team’s top power hitter as she has its lone home run, a triple and pair of doubles. Leadoff hitter Daisy Avery is batting .333 but is 5-for-11 in her last three games.