By By Marty Stamper/The Meridian Star
October 21, 2001
Saturday was a banner day for four area softball teams as they each advanced to the third round of their respective state playoff series which are set for Tuesday.
Clarkdale won on the road at Gulfport St. John in Class 2A as did Newton County at Purvis in Class 3A. Union and Nanih Waiya won home Class 1A series with Bogue Chitto and West Lincoln.
Clarkdale 10-8
St. John 8-6
Clarkdale advanced to the Class 2A South State championship series with a sweep Saturday afternoon at Gulfport.
Clarkdale will host Mercy Cross of Biloxi in the South State series on Tuesday.
In the opener, Clarkdale scored four runs in both the second and fifth innings to beat St. John.
Eighth grader Sabrina Woodall had four hits for the Lady Bulldogs. JorD'an Orr, Megan Potate, Savannah Satcher, and Brandi Limerick each had three hits.
St. John got four hits from both Miles Bailey and Jill Beattie and three hits apiece from Courtney Ulrich and Blair Ryle.
Emily Howard was the winning pitcher with Lee Ann Kaigler taking the loss.
In the second game, St. John scored three runs in the top of the second inning to take a 5-3 lead. Clarkdale got one run back in the bottom of the second and took a 7-6 lead with a three-run fourth frame. The Lady Bulldogs added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth.
Howard and Woodall both had two hits for Clarkdale as the Lady Bulldogs improved to 21-10. Howard was again the winning pitcher.
Bailey and Beattie had two hits apiece for St. John which finished with a 13-11 mark. Kaigler took the loss.
Newton County 10-7
Purvis 0-0
The Newton County Lady Cougars turned in a pair of shutouts in sweeping the Lady Tornadoes at Purvis.
In the opener, Newton County went up 8-0 with six runs in the top of the third inning. Suzanne Chaney had a single and a triple for the Lady Cougars. Joy Cavenaugh had a single and a double with Kristin Chaney adding a triple. Newton County outhit Purvis 9-3. Purvis also made seven errors.
Suzanne Chaney (29-3) was the winning pitcher.
Jennifer Ford (17-12) took the loss.
In the second game, Newton County led 1-0 through three frames before scoring twice in the bottom of the fourth and three times in the sixth.
Newton County outhit Purvis 16-3.
Krissi Harris had two singles and a triple and Betsy Clark had three singles for the Lady Cougars. Holly Jackson and Shelly Ferguson both had a pair of singles.
Suzanne Chaney (30-3) was the winning pitcher with Ford (17-13) taking the loss.
Newton County improved to 30-3 while Purvis closed out at 17-13.
Newton County will host West Lauderdale, 34-4, for the Class 3A South State championship Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
Union 6-6-6
Bogue Chitto 5-7-3
The Lady Jackets took the first and third games to win their series with Bogue Chitto Saturday afternoon at Union.
Union, 25-5, will travel to Nanih Waiya, 17-7, Tuesday for the Class 1A South State championship. The Lady Jackets defeated Nanih Waiya 20-6, 9-7, and 11-1 during the regular season.
In the first game Saturday, Union scored three runs in the second inning and added two more in the third.
Tiffany Thomas had a single and a double for Union. Morgan Milling and LaSaundra Harrison both had two singles. Marley Smith added a double. Harrison had two RBIs.
Madison Brantley (21-4) was the winning pitcher with Kia Porter taking the loss.
Randi Moak, Meleah Brown, Amber Maldonado, and Porter each had two singles for the Lady Bobcats.
In the second game, Bogue Chitto used a five-run second inning to even the series at 1-1. Jessica Melton had a single and a double for the Lady Bobcats. Porter was the winning pitcher.
Union had six hits, all of which were singles. Brantley (21-5) took the loss.
In the third game, Union erased a 2-0 deficit with three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Lady Jackets added one run in the bottom of the fifth and two more in the sixth to go up 6-2. Union outhit Bogue Chitto 12-9.
Lindsey Cassel had a single and a double for Union. Milling and Smith both had two singles. Lauren White and Thomas both added a double.
Brantley (22-5) was the winning pitcher.
Tracy Wallace had three singles for Bogue Chitto, 25-4. Porter took the loss.
Nanih Waiya 3-11-6
West Lincoln 13-6-5
The Lady Warriors battled back from losing the first game of the best-of-three series to defeat the Lady Bears Saturday afternoon at Nanih Waiya.
Nanih Waiya, 17-7, will host Union, 25-5, Tuesday for the Class 1A South State championship.
West Lincoln ended its season at 23-10.
Marty Stamper is a sports writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail him at mstamper@themeridianstar.com or call him at 693-1551, ext. 3234.
Recently retired Lady Warrior basketball coach Sammy Pace, former Warrior football coach Willie "Tenny" Coats, both of Decatur, and Charlie Payne of Florence, a two-time All-State basketball player, will be enshrined at the annual Alumni Awards luncheon beginning at noon in Mabry Memorial Cafeteria.
Pace, who retired last spring, led the Lady Warriors to two Region 23 Tournament titles and several division championships during his 16-year tenure. His teams posted 14 winning seasons in compiling a 279-157 overall record. In recognition of his success at East Central, Pace has received "Coach of the Year" honors on the region and state levels.
Pace also served as athletic director from 1992-2001.
Coats was head football coach at East Central from 1995-98.
He led the 1996 squad to a 10-1 mark, including a win over Middle Georgia College in the Golden Isles Bowl Classic in Brunswick, Ga.
The Warriors were ranked fifth in the nation following the 1996 campaign, and Coats was named MACJC "Coach of the Year."
The 1996 and 1997 squads had a combined mark of 17 wins and just four losses, which represents the best two-year record in school history.
Coats served as an assistant at East Central from 1970-76.
Payne was the Warriors leading scorer on the 1961-62 and 1962-63 squads.
He was named first team All-State following each season.