(Caption: Newton County’s Lanie Phillips dives for a ball and lost control as she hit the ground but hurried to her feet and threw the runner out at third base against Vancleave on Monday. | Robbie Robertson)
Most fast-pitch teams ride one pitcher throughout the season.
Newton County has the luxury of have two, both of who have signed to play college softball.
On Monday, it was Brittany Thomas’ turn as the senior delivered in a big way, pitching 11 dominant innings and leading the Lady Cougars to a 2-1 win in game 2. She then pitched the first four innings in game 3 to lead Newton County to a 6-4 to take the Class 4A South State series from Vancleave.
Veteran coach Justin Chaney was all smiles after watching his Lady Cougars get back to the Class 4A title series for the first time since 2015 where they will seek their 10th fast-pitch title.Chaney was especially proud of his senior pitcher who threw 11 of the 14 innings on Monday.
“Brittany was dominant,” Chaney said. “She did the same thing last year and we didn’t live up to it. It was all a team effort. We executed in every aspect of the game. We did what we were supposed to do. That’s a bunch of fighters. They are fun to coach. Everybody knows their job and can be coached hard because they know that we as coaches are going to love them.”
Thomas said she was just trying to throw strikes.
“I just tried to fill it up and let my defense work,” Thomas said. “That was really the only thing I was looking for and trying to do. He saw that I was hot in the first game and decided to go with me in the third game. If I gave out or got tired, he would put Shelby in. It’s the best I have pitched all year and I needed to in a game like this.”
Chaney had originally thought he would go with Anderson to start game 3 but after talking with assistant Shelby Bishop in between games, he left Thomas on the mound for game 3.
“I was just going to go with the hot hand,” Chaney said. “It was like every inning, do we go get her and she just kept on getting outs. We knew once we got to the fourth that we had Shelby and it was going to look like 100 miles per hour. I probably waited one batter too long but for 11 innings she hadn’t given up one inning. It was inning by inning, pitch by pitch. I have to give my pitching coach (Shelby Bishop) credit. I asked her who she wanted to go with 8. You hire folks and let the do their job. That was Shelby’s call.”
Newton County (27-7) will now face Tishomingo County in the Class 4A title series on Thursday at Nusz Park at Mississippi State in a 4 p.m. contest. Tishomingo (20-3) swept Kosciusko in a pair of 5-3 games.
(Caption: Newton County’s Katelyn Gipson slides in to third base as coach Justin Chaney points to the bag on Monday against Vancleave. | Robbie Robertson)
Newton County 6, Vancleave 4
The Lady Cougars led from the beginning and never game up the lead as they took a two-run win in game 3 of the series on Monday.
The Lady Cougars scratched their first run in the second inning when Brittany Thomas led off with a double to center field. After two outs, Lorren Ivey singled to left field and courtesy runner Brelie Phillips scored to give the Lady Cougars a 1-0 lead.
After a run by Vancleave in the top of the third, Newton County scored three in the bottom of the third. Alex Weir started the inning with a single up the middle and Landree Amis followed with a single to right to put runners at first and second. Katelyn Gipson laid down bunt that the catcher threw into right field to score Weir and Amis. Gipson later scored when Lizzy Hollingsworth reached on an error by the shortstop.
The Lady Bulldogs cut the lead to 4-3 with two unearned runs in the top of the fifth before County answered with two of their own in the bottom of the sixth. Hollingsworth led off the inning with a single up the middle and Lanie Phillips then reached on a bunt. After a sacrifice moved the runners to second and third, senior Karyle Tolbird laid down a perfect squeeze bunt to score Hollingsworth and Phillips came home on a wild pitch to take a 6-3 lead into the top of the seventh.
Thomas pitched the first four innings and got the win as she scattered six hits and allowed three unearned runs. Shelby Anderson came in and pitched the last three innings, giving up one run on two hits while striking three.
Landree Amis was 2-for-4 while Thomas had a double. Gipson, Hollingsworth, Phillips and Weir each singled and scored a run while Ivey and Tolbird each singled and had an RBI.
Newton County 2, Vancleave 1
The Lady Cougars used a stellar pitching performance from senior Brittany Thomas and took game 2 of the series with a one-run win on Monday.
County scored its first run in the second when Lanie Phillips walked and stole second and third. She came home on an RBI senior by Karlye Tolbird to take a 1-0 lead. County second run came in the third when Katelyn Gipson reached on error and took second on an error by the centerfielder. She came home on a single by Thomas to give County a 2-0 lead.
County only had four hits as Thomas was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Gipson singled and scored while Tolbird singled and had an RBI.
Thomas pitched all seven innings and scattered six hits while striking out two and walking three.
Vancleave 4, Newton County 2
The Lady Bulldogs built a 4-0 lead, thanks to a three-run fourth inning and took a two-run win over the Lady Cougars in game 1 of the series on Friday.
Vancleave scored one in the first and three in the fourth while County scored two in the sixth.
Each team had five hits as Shelby Anderson and Brittany Thomas were each 2-for-3 while Landree Amis doubled and scored a run. Lizzy Hollingsworth had an RBI on a sacrifice fly.
