ROCKINGHAM – It’s been a stormy week for the Richmond Senior High School softball team. But in a good way.
The No. 1 seeded Lady Raiders (23-3) brought the thunder with the bats earlier this week in a 17-0 thrashing of No. 8 Lake Norman High School in the third round of the NCHSAA 4A state playoffs. Richmond put six balls into orbit by four different players, breaking the program’s single-game record for the most home runs in a game.
They also blasted five of those home runs in a 12-run bottom of the fourth inning, tying a state record with the most longballs in a single inning. Senior catcher Owen Bowers slapped two over the fence that inning, also writing her name in the record books for tying the most by a single player in one inning.
But the Lady Raiders’ quest for 4A state title will take a short hiatus, as the week’s wet weather has slowed play across the state.
Richmond’s next opponent will be the winner of the No. 5 Providence/No. 13 Hickory Ridge matchup. The third-round game that was initially scheduled to be played on Tuesday, like most other third-round contests, has yet to be played due to inclement weather. At the the time of this publication, that game is currently scheduled to be played Friday at Providence.
During the second game of the season, the two teams met in a non-conference matchup that resulted in Hickory Ridge shutting out Providence 14-0 in five innings on the road. The Lady Panthers were outhit 14-2, with the Lady Ragin’ Bulls slapping four doubles and a triple.
That means, weather permitting, Richmond will hit the diamond for a Saturday game, with a time still to be decided.
But for head coach Wendy Wallace, the break isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It gives her team an extra day of practice and a chance to prepare for either team.
“We think know what to expect with Providence because they brought back a lot of their players,” Wallace said after practice Thursday. “We’re just trying to prepare for both teams. Providence has a couple of big hitters, so we need to limit what they can do. It just boils down to us being able to get hits early.
“We had a week between the (Sandhills Athletic Conference) tournament and the second round of the playoffs,” she continued, speaking about gap between games. “So, of course, we’re anxiously waiting to play. Fortunately, even with the rain, we have a place we can come and hit inside. We’re just doing our normal routine.”
Admitting that she doesn’t know much about the Lady Ragin’ Bulls (17-5), who finished finished third in the Southwestern Conference in the regular season, Wallace says she’s doing some scouting to see what she can find out.
According to Maxpreps.com, Hickory Ridge has used a duo of pitchers in freshman Brittany Snyder (10-1) and senior Hanna Hampel (7-4). Snyder has taken the bulk of the pitching responsibilities, tossing 69.2 innings in 14 appearances this season. Hampel isn’t far behind, as she’s pitched 48 innings in 12 appearances. Both pitchers have earned run averages over three (Snyder, 3.11; Hampel, 3.65), and have combined for 135 strikeouts.
One interesting stat is that Snyder has given up 11 home runs this season to opposing batters, which may be a benefit for the Lady Raiders, should they face her, as they’ve belted 52 dingers on the year.
At the dish, the Lady Ragin’ Bulls are batting .437 as a team, and are led by a pair of juniors in Cori Sprinkle (.552) and Ally Todaro (.500). Sprinkle leads the team in hits (37), runs scored (38) and triples (four), while Todaro leads the club with six homers.
Richmond ace Greyson Way will also have to be aware of junior Jenna Cirino, who leads Hickory Ridge in RBIs with 36, and is batting .483 through 22 games this season.
On the flip side, Wallace and company are better familiarized with the likes of Providence (22-3). In the second round of the 2017 state playoffs, No. 2 seeded Richmond scooted past the No. 14 seeded Lady Panthers 6-3. This season, Providence finished undefeated in the South Meck 7 Conference, and have won their last 19 ball games.
In last year’s meeting, Wallace recalled that her team only managed to collect six hits off of then-sophomore pitcher Carolyn Bentley. She noted that Bentley throws in the “mid to upper 50s” and “threw inside, threw a screw (ball) and threw up in the zone a lot.”
The game’s defining moment came in the bottom half of the fifth inning when current Richmond sophomore Jadyn Johnson raked a one-out grand slam to center field. Former Lady Raider NaLee Jacobs added to the lead with a two-run shot in the sixth inning.
This season, the Lady Panthers have accumulated 22 wins, but on a weak strength of schedule (2.2). For comparison, Richmond has one of the toughest 4A strength of schedules with a 10.8. Bentley has pitched the majority of Providence’s games, racking up a 17-0 record in 19 appearances, a 1.05 ERA, and has struck out 130 batters in 113 innings.
Offensively, Providence has seven batters who are hitting over .440, with two players batting above the .500 mark (sophomore Kat Moody, .538; senior Bianca Zaffarese, .529). Other offensive threats are senior Natalie Hallman (club-best 34 hits, 21 RBIs) and junior Jenna McCauley (33 hits and a team-best with 34 RBIs and 11 home runs).
Whichever school her team will face, Wallace says “we’re ready.” Richmond will look to keep its 12-game winning streak alive Saturday, and with a win, will advance to the Western Regional Finals for the second season in a row.
The ROSports department will update the time of the fourth-round game when the information is made available.
