The CCA Lady Patriots’ window for a third consecutive state championship hasn’t closed but things got a lot more difficult this afternoon in Columbus. After defeating the Flint River Academy Wildcats 7-0 in game one Thursday morning, the David Emanuel Lady Eagles turned the tables on the Lady Patriots with a 7-0 defeat in the 2 p.m. game.
To get to Saturday’s championship games, CCA will have to win three games on Friday. Then, on Saturday, the Lady Patriots will have to beat their opponent, whoever that may be, twice for the title.
The Flint River game was a typical CCA affair. The Lady Patriots jumped out to an early 5-0 lead then added two more in the sixth for a 7-0 advantage. Peighton Harper and eighth grader Allie Veal handled the pitching duties, combining for a four-hit shutout.
Emma Gourley led CCA offensively with a 4-4, three-run, three-RBI day. She doubled twice and homered. Mattie Lewis was 2-4 with a home run, two RBI, and one run. Brilynn Waldron and Shanley Meeks each had two hits as well.
Harper picked up the win with a four-inning outing. She scattered three hits across four innings, striking out three and walking three. Veal gave up one hit and struck out four.
The win pitted them against the Lady Eagles in the 2 p.m. slot. The last time these two teams played, the Lady Patriots double dipped the Lady Eagles for last year’s state championship.
This time, things turned out very differently.
The Lady Eagles scored a run in the first, three in the second, one in the fourth, and two in the sixth. Only one of DEA’s seven runs was earned thanks to an uncharacteristic five CCA errors.
Gourley was the only Lady Patriot with multiple hits. She was 2-3, giving her six hits in seven at-bats for the first two games. Lewis doubled while Meeks and Veal had the other two hits for CCA.
Meeks lasted six innings, giving up seven runs on eight hits while striking out four and walking one. Only one of those seven runs was earned. Veal threw another inning in relief. She didn’t give up a hit, run, or a walk. She struck out one.
The loss drops the Lady Patriots into the loser’s bracket where they will play Twiggs Academy on Friday morning at 10 a.m. The winner plays the winner between Thomas Jefferson Academy and Crisp Academy at 2 p.m. The winner of that game will play the loser between David Emanuel and top-ranked Fullington at 4 p.m. The winner of that game makes Saturday morning’s championship game. The survivor of the 4 p.m. contest also advances to the championship game Saturday morning.
