2008 May-16
3A SOFTBALL PLAYOFFS: Enka 5, West Iredell 0
Warriors fall in second round
By Brian Meadows
CANDLER — West Iredell seniors Crystal Beam and Kendayl Waugh shared a warm embrace and wiped away a few tears in the dugout Friday before heading for the bus.
Enka’s 5-0 victory in the second round of the 3A state softball playoffs marked the end of the Warriors’ season as well as two sensational high school careers.
“Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose,” Waugh shrugged.
Erratic defense put the Warriors in an early hole, and they couldn’t dig themselves out.
Enka capitalized on three second-inning miscues to score twice. West Iredell committed seven errors in the game.
“Can’t do much with that,” catcher Elizabeth Walden said.
Jets pitcher Jordan West earned the win. She threw five innings, allowing four hits. Jamie Burwell struck out six and walked three over the final two innings to preserve the shutout.
Enka (19-3) advanced to the third round, where it will meet Tuscola.
“It was a great run,” first-year Warriors coach Tiffany Haynes said.
Kara Dawkins, Mary Keever, Hannah Pennell and Hannah Withers each had one hit for the Warriors, who won 11 of their final 13 games and finished 16-7.
Pennell fanned eight, with three of those strikeouts coming after she took a line drive off her nonthrowing shoulder in the third inning. The junior held Enka to six hits.
“We weren’t nervous, we just had a couple bad innings,” Walden said.
One of those was the bottom of the fifth, when Enka scored three more runs, keyed by Kadie Sutton’s two-run homer to right center.
“The wind stopped blowing for them,” Waugh laughed.
Kaylyn Chapman hammered a ball in the top of the fifth, but the steady breeze streaming in toward home plate stymied the drive, and center fielder Ashley McCurry gloved it.
The Warriors threatened in the sixth, but left the bases loaded. They stranded 12 baserunners altogether.
A disappointing conclusion doesn’t overshadow the body of work, though.
“It was a good season,” Beam said. “We came a long way and had some big wins.”
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