Softball wins one, loses two in PBC tournament

Bobcats upset Columbus State, fall to Armstrong Atlantic, Augusta State to end 2011 season

When the No. 6 seeded Georgia College softball team showed up to the Peach Belt Conference Tournament in Florence, S.C., the Bobcats’ first game on April 15 was approached with the right mentality.

“We knew we had to come in and win,” junior All-Conference catcher Anna Parker said.

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Monroe

Columbus State put up their only score in the first, but a determined Chandler and Bobcat defense allowed nothing else, taking the game 3-1. Parker plated the go-ahead run in the fifth inning with a 2-RBI double to right center. Senior second baseman Brandie Monroe scored in the top of the sixth on a fielder’s choice from Corby Holmes, securing the win.

“I was feeling really excited. I knew that it was going to be all or nothing,” Monroe said. “This is pretty much the last time all four seniors are going to be playing together.”

The Bobcats remembered to “leave it all on the field,” words of wisdom from former U.S. softball member Michelle Waters, who spoke at the PBC banquet. Monroe propelled Georgia College by leading off the game with a single against No. 2 Armstrong-Atlantic in the second round.

“I really just started thinking she’s going to throw an outside pitch,” Monroe said. “The first pitch was outside and I just drove it there.”

With the Pirates on their heels, junior Haley Burnett set the bat down and proved her skills on the mound, stranding 10 Armstrong runners on base. Not all of her jams were avoidable though when a pair of bobcat errors plated three for Armstrong in the fifth.

Still fighting strong, Georgia College’s junior first baseman Shahlisa Shirley decided at a no better time to drop her first Division II homer in the sixth, cutting the deficit to only two runs.

“She actually gave me a pitch down the middle. I felt it as an opportunity to turn the page and try to win it,” Shirley said.

As a junior Shirley had a strong finish to the season, giving the confidence required to return as a leading senior.

“It fell through when we definitely needed it, but we all fought hard. I want to continue to do that and I really want to lead my team further in the conference,” Shirley said.

Georgia College’s offense continued their comeback attempts in the seventh when two runners got on base, but a crucial strike three to end the game would be all the day had for the Bobcats in a 4-2 loss.

The tournament still left hope for one more game together on April 16 against Augusta State University. Chandler was flawless through her first two innings, but the Jaguars came alive, adding a run in the next two innings, going up 5-0 by the fifth and eventually ending the game 6-0.

The season, therefore, came to an end for the Georgia College softball team, but not without profound memories and passion.

“For 17 years now I have been doing the same thing, and now I have to let it go and learn something new,” Monroe said.

The team loses key seniors Brandie Monroe, rightfielder Kati Pickowitz, leftfielder Lauren Potts, and infielder/pinch runner Bailey Thompson, but the winning mentality is still at hand for next year.

“We definitely picked it up towards the end of the season,” Parker said. “We have the potential, and I think next year we can do it.”

Posted by Taylor Lamb on Apr 21 2011. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.