Lady Dawgs-Waxahachie Series Goes To Game 3

Lady Indians Beat North 8-6 To Even Series; Teams Play Saturday At Coppell

WAXAHACHIE—This time the pitching changes worked against McKinney North.

Reliever Torri Banda turned back the Lady Bulldogs’ improbable seventh-inning rally and homestanding Waxahachie held on for an 8-6 win in Game 2 of the Class 4A Region II semifinals Friday night.

North (27-8-2) and Waxahachie (28-12) start Game 3 of their best-of-three series at 1 p.m. Saturday at Coppell.

The Lady Indians, just 24 hours removed from being no-hit, erupted for eight runs on four hits and six walks in the fifth inning and took an 8-2 lead into the final frame. The Lady Bulldogs, ranked No. 3 in the state, made one last push, highlighted by Kathy Shelton’s three-run home run.

In fact, North had the tying runs on third and second base with no outs in the top of the seventh but couldn’t bring either home.

Starter Ashliegh McLean seemed to be maintaining the momentum from Thursday’s no-hit shutout in Game 1, holding Waxahachie to just one bloop single through four innings. And with two strikeouts to start the fifth it appeared it would last a little longer. But three walks, a double, and a bases-clearing triple by Sherri Polanco gave the Lady Indians their first lead of the series.

Lindsay Collings, who won Game 3 of last week’s regional quarterfinal series with Mesquite Poteet in relief, took the mound. She walked Tori Banda and Lauren Simpson drove in two runs with a single. Brianna Banda, who struck out swinging in both of her at-bats in Game 1, drove the ball over the centerfield wall for a three-run homer.

McLean returned to the mound and, after two more walks, forced Monica Jaramillo to ground out.

The Lady Bulldogs didn’t threaten in the sixth, but McLean opened the seventh with a hard double to left-center field. Tayler Burnside reached on a walk and Haley Wagner’s bloop single to left took a strange bounce and McLean scored. Two pitches later, Shelton smashed Andi Allen’s fastball over the right field fence for a three-run homer.

After Lindsay Post doubled off the left field fence, Torri Banda took over for Allen. She walked Amy Kilpatrick and both runners advanced a base on a wild pitch and a steal. But Banda coaxed two groundouts and a strikeout to end the rally.

North struck early, scoring twice in the first inning. Shelton doubled and scored on Amy Kilpatrick’s fielder’s choice. Knowles’ double over the centerfielder drove in Kilpatrick. But the Lady Bulldogs managed just one hit over the next five innings and stranded four runners.