Things are continuing to come together in Sweetwater.
It was away from Sweetwater where the newest sign comes from. The Lady Wildcats visited Loudon Friday, leaving the rival and former district foe after a 9-1 win in a comprehensive performance.
Sweetwater totaled 13 hits in the win while holding Loudon to one run and committing one error. When the teams met 39 days earlier, Sweetwater was held to five hits and one earned run in a 4-2 home loss.
“This was a test of how far we have come. We struggled with Loudon at the beginning of the season which we should have been just teeing off,” Sweetwater coach Sarah Davies said. “For them to work hard this year and get that confidence, to get those hits and string those together, that is showing how far we have come. It is a great improvement.”
Madisyn Vestal and Lilly Woodruff boasted three RBIs each in Sweetwater’s explosion. Kylie Pliske and Tori Thompson added one RBI apiece while the Lady Wildcats (5-12) tallied 13 hits from seven batters.
Vestal led Sweetwater with three hits while Maddy Baylog, Pliske, Kylee Richeson and Woodruff all had multi-hit days.
Offensively, Sweetwater got going early, pushing three runs across in the first frame in three consecutive at-bats. Thompson, Vestal and Pliske all notched RBI singles back-to-back-to-back from the No. 5 through No. 7 spots in the lineup.
Vestal and Pliske pushed runs across in consecutive at-bats again in the seventh inning with a pair of singles.
“It set the tone. We tend to dig ourselves some holes and try to battle out in the later innings. To set the tone and get them rattled a little bit is what we have to do,” Davies added. “I said, ‘This is a must-win. I know they are not in our district anymore, but we match up very well with Loudon.’”
Vestal added her second RBI in her next at-bat, scoring Baylog with a left field single.
Freshman Woodruff moved the guest’s advantage from four runs to seven with one swing of the bat in the fourth inning. Her first-pitch home run to center field scored Shanea Jewell and Ella Morgan.
The defensive performance is another sign of Sweetwater’s turnaround.
Loudon left eight runners on base, including two in the bottom of the sixth where Sweetwater withheld two leadoff singles via a Morgan strikeout and pop-outs to Pliske and Danielle Jones.
“I have talked all year about still trying to figure out where to put people. But I think the last four games, we have had the same lineup which is the longest we have gone all year,” Davies said. “Putting Ella in, who has worked her butt off pitching, and being able to put Lilly in the defense to cut down those errors has made a vast improvement.”
Sweetwater has kept the infield intact in recent performances with minor movement in the outfield.
One of the key moves in the outfield is Pliske’s speed out there.
“That has helped a lot. I think we have kind of plugged those holes we were having errors in. It is a huge testament to Maddy Baylog the past couple years at first base,” Davies added.
Baylog’s move to third base from first has seen Sweetwater settle things on the corner.
“She has been stellar at that third base position that has been key to being able to stay close in games and be able to win a couple,” Davies said.
Morgan struck out four while walking none and allowing seven hits and one run.
“She has really proved herself. She gave it her all and I have to give her lots of accolades,” Davies said.
Morgan’s performance has shown her determination. The senior competed in last week’s Monroe County Games, where she ran two miles, competed in a 40-yard dash and did a three-minute plank before traveling to Knoxville Catholic and striking out six batters with no walks and one extra-base hit allowed.
“That just shows how much she wants this and the impact she wants to make her senior year,” Davies said. “She is leaving a name for herself in SHS softball.”
Sweetwater (2-6 in District 3-2A) has two league games remaining, hosting Kingston before visiting Tellico Plains.
“This is kind of where we wanted to be. We talked all year that our record does not matter. What matters is getting better, putting people in the right positions and getting our confidence going into the tournament,” Davies said. “We have Kingston coming up. They are a solid team and going to end up first in our district, but we have to get the confidence against them.”
The Lady Wildcats sit within distance of McMinn Central, which holds the tiebreaker, and Tellico Plains, which has beaten Sweetwater in the lone meeting so far.
“We have cut errors down and we will shock some people. We have Tellico coming up and that is a winnable game in my opinion,” Davies added. “We did well against them last time. We have Eagleton and we will match up well against them.”
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