By Johnny Sanders, Sports Editor
MOODY – The Moody Lady Blue Devils won back-to-back games against rival Saint Clair Saints on Saturday to claim the 5A Area 9 championship and advance to regionals in the state playoffs.
In the first game of the area championship series, Moody got the hard-fought win over the Saints by a score of 8-7. The Saints came out and scored three runs in the top of the first but Moody would answer with four in the bottom. Saint Clair would get a run in the second to tie the game at four and held Moody scoreless in consecutive innings. In the top of the fourth, the Saints took a 6-4 lead with two runs and Moody scored a run in the bottom. The Blue Devils would slowly choke out the Saints with a tying run in the bottom of the fifth and, after Saint Clair re-claimed the lead in the top of the sixth, Moody came up with two runs in the bottom of the inning and held the Saints scoreless in the top of the seventh to get the win in game one of the weekend series. Bella Turley pitched the first three innings, allowing six hits and four runs. Riley Hodges would come in and get the win, going four innings and allowing two hits and three runs and striking out one batter. At the plate, Taylor Rogers had three RBI and Kendall Trimm had two.
Game two was not near as entertaining unless you are a Moody fan. The Blue Devils scored three in the bottom of the second and fourth innings and finished things off in the bottom of the sixth with five runs, while holding the Saints to a single run in the top of the third for the 11-1 blowout win, earning them the area title and the right to play more postseason softball. Turley owned the mound, going the distance and allowing five hits and a run while striking out three batters. Abi Gray drove in three runs while Trimm and Lacey Nichols drove in two each.
The area champs (23-16 overall) now await their opponent in the regional bracket.
