BOILING SPRINGS, SC - After two lopsided scores last year between the two teams, the Boiling Springs and Byrnes softball teams battled in a pitching duel on Friday night as the Rebels grabbed the 1-0 victory.
While the Bulldogs didn't come away with the victory, Boiling Springs head coach Hannah McDowell said she saw the game as a turning point for her team as they finally found their identity. "Tonight was a very emotional softball game especially from the coaches as we've seen the growth in the girls from just Tuesday," said McDowell. "We've talked a lot about the mental side of the game since our last game and tonight was just one of those games that nobody deserved to lose. I told our girls that this is our building moment and the way we played tonight is our standard and we'll just build on it from here." Through the first three innings neither Boiling Springs pitcher Bri Stanley nor Byrnes pitcher Sierra Maness allowed a run but in the top of the fourth inning Maness broke that scoreless streak when she led off the inning by hitting a home run to left centerfield that just barely cleared the wall to give Byrnes a 1-0 lead. From that point on the pitchers kept their duel going, not allowing a run to score on either side the rest of the game. Maness had a no-hitter going into the bottom of the seventh inning for Byrnes but a really good slap hit to the left side of the infield by the Bulldogs Emma Wilkins broke up the no-hitter and also gave the Bulldogs a chance to win the game with two outs in the final inning. The Bulldogs ended up falling short but the fight from the team throughout the game showed their resiliency. "I'd rather have our girls in a game like this where no one deserves to lose than in a game where we win big," said McDowell. "I think we learn a lot from these moments and going forward I think we have a bigger physical and mental advantage." Bulldogs pitcher Bri Stanley ended her strong game on Friday night pitching seven innings while allowing one run on five hits and striking out eight batters. The performance on Friday continues a strong season by Stanley from the pitching circle this season which McDowell says comes from the mental work they do each day in practice to get ready for games. "In our bullpens we work on visualizing the zone and seeing where we want our pitches to go along with sequencing," said McDowell. "Bri is a very fiery competitor and a passionate player but I believe she has learned to keep that in-check from the pitching circle this year by battling through those moments by having the confidence in what we do in practice will show up in the game." Byrnes pitcher Sierra Maness ended the game pitching seven innings while allowing one hit and striking out 15 batters. Boiling Springs will finish out their first trip through region play on Tuesday when they host Gaffney. Comments are closed.
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