It was nothing short of a complete performance for Allen Roberts.
Traveling almost an hour to the team that beat the Lady Chiefs in last year’s District 5-3A Championship will turn some heads, but Sequoyah’s performance turned even more.
The Lady Chiefs (3-1; 2-0) dominated all three phases of the night, tallying 15 hits and three home runs while individual performances from Kaleigh Atchley — 14 strikeouts — and Tynleigh Ray — seven RBIs — led Sequoyah to a 13-3 win.
“I think their confidence is just continuing to grow every night out. This was a team we battled with last year and most all of their girls are back,” Roberts said. “You expect them to be a quality team and they are. I just feel like our girls showed up ready to play and hit.”
Atchley settled into the night after a shaky start. Playing with an early five-run lead, Sequoyah nearly ended the first inning quickly.
But South-Doyle sparked a small rally, pushing a pair of runs off on three hits. Atchley then struck out 14 batters while she and Sequoyah navigated jams.
“She really settled in. She was really in command and the last two or three innings of the ball game she was lights out,” Roberts said. “She was controlling their lineup and we found a really good rhythm. Once we got into that rhythm, she was in command.”
The Lady Cherokees put two batters on to start the third inning, but Atchley struck out the side on 12 pitches. Sequoyah turned South-Doyle’s squeeze attempts into a double play to end the fourth inning.
South-Doyle created a bit of friction in the bottom of the seventh, but the one run off two hits was not enough to turn around an 11-run deficit.
“The offense allowed her to settle in and take pressure off of her and the defense played well behind her. We are strong defensively,” Roberts added. “I just felt like it was a complete team effort. We are playing good everywhere.”
Ray led the Lady Chiefs' offense with two home runs, three hits and seven RBIs.
“What a night Tynleigh had. And that is not a small field, so that is two deep drives she had. And the other hit may have been her hardest hit ball,” Roberts said.
Ray cleaned the bags with a three-run home run in the top of the first to create a five-run difference before her second three-run blast came in the fourth inning and put her team ahead by seven.
Mysterie Shubert found a two-run home run in the top of the second.
“We have been hitting the ball great and it showed up. It just felt like we were in control all game long,” Roberts said.
Atchley’s bat started the night with a double before advancing on an error put into play by Shubert. Lilly Griffitts knocked a grounder down in the next at-bat, scoring Alicia Kimble.
Kimble tallied her own RBI in the third inning when her two-out single scored BriAysa Bowman.
Back-to-back errors in the top of the seventh put two Lady Chiefs on. Ray pushed one home when her missile line drive scored Kimble. Bella Hall scored the 13th run off Megan Ladd’s flyout in the next at-bat.
Ray and Shae Ahlstrom notched three-hit performances.
Sequoyah was inches away from having its third four-home-run game when Griffitts blast bounced off the top of the wall.
As a team, the Lady Chiefs hold a .385 average with 55 hits, 45 RBIs and 12 home runs.
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