BY JOHNNY PAINTER
Two days after dropping its opening game of the District 2-3A softball tournament to Grainger, then bouncing back with a dominant win over Claiborne, Greeneville faced the Grizzlies once more in a second elimination game.
Unfortunately for the Lady Devils, history repeated itself as Grainger erupted for 11 runs over the final two innings to secure a 13–3 victory.
The loss ends Greeneville’s season with a 19-15 record.
Greeneville’s starting pitcher, Jamie Jackson, gave up two runs on three hits in the first inning but managed to escape further trouble as her defense stranded the bases loaded.
Down 2–0 in the third, the Lady Devils sparked a brief rally. Brooke Parsley notched the first of her two singles, then advanced to second on a walk by Kinsley Lewandowski. Kaley Garland followed with a sharp single to left, driving in Parsley to cut the deficit to 2–1.
Both Lewandowski and Garland would come around to score on a misplayed bunt single by Baylee Ramsey, giving Greeneville a short-lived 3–2 lead.
Grainger quickly answered with five runs in the fourth, knocking Jackson out of the game after she surrendered seven runs on eight hits.
Amanda Kledzik delivered the key hit with an RBI double, and back-to-back squeeze bunts helped unnerve the Lady Devil defense.
Reliever Brynlee Jones entered in the fifth but was greeted with six more runs on just two hits, putting the game well out of reach.
Despite the loss, first-year head coach Lilly Million expressed pride in her team’s effort. Greeneville managed just four hits—all singles—but only struck out once.
“It was just those two big innings that sealed our day, especially when we couldn’t get things going,” Million said. Still, the Lady Devils’ 19-win season exceeded expectations for a team that lost several seniors and was adjusting to a new head coach.
“Being a first-year head coach, I really didn’t know what to expect,” Million added. “Several people didn’t give us much of a chance, but our girls played hard and made big strides throughout the season. Hopefully, our young players—and those coming up—can learn from this experience and continue to grow in our program.”
