By Trey Hunter
Sports Editor
DALE – The Wildcats split two games against Class 4A opponents on the first day of the 2019 Dale Festival Friday.
Senior Clara Pyle held Harrah to three runs and received just enough run support to pick up her third win of the year as the Cats knocked off the Panthers 5-3 in Game 1.
Pyle allowed just two hits and three walks with six strikeouts over five innings. She held Harrah (14-8, 5-3 District 4A-4) scoreless through five innings before allowing all three runs in the sixth. Senior Chloe Bohuslavicky earned the save in a rare relief appearance.
The Cats (12-3, 8-0) cracked the scoreboard in the third inning, plating two runs on three singles by seniors Sydney Kozikoski, Jordan Collins and Ashlyn Brown. Collins and Brown each picked up an RBI to give Piedmont a 2-0 lead.
Piedmont tacked on three runs in the fifth inning before Harrah’s attempted rally.
Freshman Karissa Fiegener led off with a single before scoring as Collins reached on a one-out error for a 3-0 lead. Collins stole second and third before scoring as Brown reached on the second error of the inning for a 4-0 advantage. Senior Jade Rowland followed with a RBI single to make it 5-0. Collins, Brown and Rowland combined for four hits and four RBI in the win.
Newcastle 4, Piedmont 3
A walk-off single by Newcastle’s McKenzie Wagoner led to Piedmont’s third loss of the season in Game 2 of the doubleheader.
The Wildcats entered the bottom of the sixth inning with a 3-2 lead before the Racers (17-2, 9-0 District 4A-1) loaded the bases with a leadoff single, a hit-by-pitch and a walk. Wagoner followed with a single to center field off Pyle for two runs and the win.
The loss marked Pyle’s second of the season and Piedmont’s third in 14 games. Pyle entered the game in relief after Bohuslavicky allowed two runs on six hits and a walk over the first three and two-thirds innings.
Piedmont tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the fourth to work a no-decision for Bohuslavicky and then gained a 3-2 lead in the top of the sixth before Newcastle’s late rally.
Collins led off the fourth with a triple and then scored on a RBI single by Bohuslavicky. Senior Rikki Hadley followed with a double before a single by Brown and a sac-fly by Rowland to make it 2-2.
Senior Mehgan Ray was placed at second for the tiebreaker in the top of the sixth before moving to third on a passed ball. Hadley drove in Ray with a sac-fly to right field for the one-run lead. The Cats were held to six hits, including two from Brown and three RBI, including one apiece from Bohuslavicky, Hadley and Rowland.
Piedmont was scheduled to take on 3A Prague and 4A Mannford Saturday, but the games were cancelled due to rain. The Cats return to action Monday at home, hosting a doubleheader against Western Heights (5-13, 0-6). The team will also celebrate senior night Monday.
