Down two runs in their last at bat in the seventh inning of their 52nd District Tournament game Monday against Middlesboro at Harlan County High School, the Harlan Lady Dragons showed the grit needed to stay alive.
Down one run and in their last at bat in the eighth inning, the Lady Dragons walked off with a 6-5 win on Jordyn Smith’s bases-loaded two-run single.
“They’ve grown into this, and I couldn’t be more proud of them. They would have probably folded in a game like this (in previous years), but they wouldn’t quit,” Harlan coach David Overbay said. “Middlesboro has a heck of a team and played South (Laurel) and Corbin really tough the past couple of weeks.”
“It was a good game right until the end,” Middlesboro coach Petie Gilbert said. “They came up with some big hits. We played well. We just have to try to get better next year.”
Junior first baseman Abbi Fields kept Harlan in the game early with a pair of solo homers in the third and fourth innings. She also had a single in the decisive eighth inning,
“Abbi is so strong and had some big hits, including that one in the last inning,” Overbay said.
Smith, a seventh grader, had four hits in five at bats to lead the Harlan offense.
“Jordyn has come along and grown into what she is now. I said at the beginning she was going to help us,” Overbay said.
Addison Jackson added two singles for the Lady Dragons. Ella Farley, Ella Lisenbee, Ava Nunez and Rhileigh Estes contributed one single each.
Kaylee Lawson, Kenna Lawson and Abney Allen led the 10-17 Lady Jackets with a double and single each. Keevi Betts singled twice. Raeghan Moyers and Kennedy Yoakum had one single each.
Smith earned the win in the circle as she gave up three runs on five hits in five innings with five strikeouts and three walks. Mallory McNiel started and allowed two runs on five hits with one strikeout and no walks in three-plus innings.
Kaylee Lawson allowed six runs on 11 hits with five strikeouts and two walks in seven-plus innings. Kenna Lawson allowed hits to both batters she faced in the eighth inning.
Down two runs and down to their final two outs, four straight Lady Dragons reached base in the seventh inning as Farley was hit by a pitch and Smith, Lisinbee and Jackson followed with singles to pull Harlan within one. Gracie Hensley bounced back to Lawson for a force at home for the second out., Nunez beat out an infield hit to short to tie the game before Lawson struck out McNiel to send the game to extra innings.
Kaylee Lawsons singled one out in the eighth, then moved to third when Betts reached on a bunt as Fields was unable to catch Lisenbee’s throw from third. Yoakum’s ground out brought in the go-ahead run.
Estes, Fields and Farley opened the bottom of the eighth with hits to load the bases before Smith sliced a hit past third base for the tying and winning runs.
Harlan (13-18) advances to play Harlan County on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. in the district championship game. The Lady Dragons advanced out of the first round for the second straight year but only the third time in the past 15 years. Harlan hasn’t won a district title since 2004.
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Middlesboro 000 202 01 — 5. 10. 0
Harlan 001 100 22 — 6. 13. 2
Kaylee Lawson, Kenna Lawson (8) and Middleton; McNiel, Smith (4) and Lisenbee. WP — Smith (5-3). LP — Kaylee Lawson. HR — Fields 2 (6).