Region Championship: Lady Waves at Coalfield
COALFIELD – A fourth consecutive Region Title for the Lady Waves was not to be. Midway came up one run short at Coalfield on Wednesday. The 1-0 loss ended the Lady Waves’ three year reign atop Region 2A.
Coalfield placed a runner on base in the bottom of the fourth inning, after the #3 batter in the order was slightly grazed by a pitch. That runner would steal second in a close throw down play to shortstop Alex Coffman. The #4 batter then singled up the middle to score the runner from second. That gave Coalfield the only run it would need. Midway did hit the ball much better than in the previous game with Coalfield, even though that game turned out to be a 1-0 victory for the Lady Waves.
Midway would leave runners stranded in the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh innings. In the seventh, Midway opened the inning with a Paige Moree single, followed by a Hali Morris single. With runners on first and second, and no outs, the Lady Waves’ fans had some hope. That hope was squashed after a strikeout, a pop up, and another strikeout would end the game and the Championship run.
Both teams played hard and both deserved to win. The Green defense did not give up one error. Midway pitcher Hannah Colyer pitched a beautiful game, but could not get the run support she needed to get the win. Lady Wave first baseman Kati Alexander looked sharp on several plays at first base. Shortstop Alex Coffman’s slap hit in the top of the fourth inning was a Lady Vol moment. Once again, Krystal “Put Me in Anywhere Coach” Rue exceeded all expectations with a great performance at the catcher position.
The Lady Waves will now have to go to Unaka and get a win to continue their streak of four straight State Tournament trips. The game will be played on Friday. Game time is yet to be announced.