By Stan Caldwell
stanmansportsfan.com
 
HATTIESBURG – William Carey knew what it needed to do Saturday in its final softball doubleheader of the season, just win one game.
 
One win would secure at least a share of the Southern States Athletic Conference regular-season championship and the top seed in the upcoming SSAC Tournament, but the Crusaders wanted more, an outright championship.
 
They did it the hard way, but that's just what they got, a doubleheader sweep of Stillman College Saturday afternoon at Joseph and Nancy Fail Field.
 
A bizarre seventh-inning rally allowed Carey to pull out a 6-5 victory in the second game of the doubleheader, securing the sweep after sophomore Ryanne Hornsby tossed a three-hit shutout for a 2-0 win in the opener.
 
"The other night, after we were able to get Mobile twice, every time I turned around, I kept hearing, 'all we need to do is split,'" said Carey head coach Craig Fletcher.
 
"And I told the girls, 'no, I don't want to split. I want to win it outright, no questions asked, playing at home on Senior Day, let's go take care of business.' We pulled it out. It wasn't the prettiest, but they stayed with it and when they needed to, they came through."
 
The Crusaders (34-12 overall, 20-6 conference) head into the SSAC Tournament at Decatur, Ala. with the top seed secured. The Tigers (31-11, 15-11) finished the regular season as the fifth seed in the tournament.
 
Defense behind Hornsby played a big role in the first game.
 
The Tigers looked to be in business right from the start against Hornsby. Senior Lauren Haskins, a dangerous leadoff batter, legged out a bunt single down the third-base line, then quickly stole second.
 
Hornsby got a strikeout, then on the next pitch senior Susie LeBert snagged a hot shot at second base, and her throw to the bag beat Haskins, as sophomore shortstop Kinley Hogue made a leaping catch and still kept a toe on the bag.
 
"Our defense is nothing like I've seen," said LeBert. "We're always on our A game, we're always backing up our pitchers. There aren't any bad things to say about our defense."
 
The Crusaders quickly turned the tables on Stillman in the bottom of the inning.
 
Leadoff batter Brooke Tanner, one of seven players honored Saturday at Senior Day, poked a single into leftfield and immediately stole second. She took third on a sharp ground ball and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of senior Carley Kidder.
 
WCU had a chance to score in the second inning, getting runners to second and third with only one out, but Stillman senior right-hander Lexi McCray got off the hook with a popup to shallow leftfield and groundout.
 
Carey did score in the fourth, but could have had more after getting runners to second and third with no outs.
 
Senior Dee Dee West led off with a single and LeBert smacked a gapper to the wall in right-centerfield for an RBI double. Freshman Liz Cross reached on an infield single, sending LeBert to third, and Cross quickly stole second.
 
"I went into the box, and I knew that's where I needed to be in that situation," said LeBert. "I knew if I could just put a good swing on a good pitch, good things would happen. It worked out in the end."
 
But again McCray stymied the Crusaders, inducing two ground balls and a popup to get out of trouble.
 
McCray (14-3) saw a splendid season – and career – possibly come to an end in the sixth inning, when she knocked down a hard-hit comebacker off the bat of West with her pitching hand. McCray alertly made the out, but she was in tremendous pain and had to come out.
 
It didn't matter either way. Sophomore Jasmine Wade avoided trouble in relief of McCray, but Hornsby was in command.
 
"All my pitches were moving good, and I knew I could trust my defense behind me," said Hornsby. "
 
Hornsby (20-7) pitched around a one-out walk in the second, then Haskins' walk with two out in the third was erased when she was thrown out trying to steal second.
 
An off-line throw from sophomore catcher Albanie Fussell actually made the play, as the ball arrived in Hogue's glove as it brushed across the helmet of Haskins as she slid into second.
 
The Tigers were retired in order in the fourth and fifth, but mounted a threat in the sixth, as junior Karlie Davidson hit a single to left and sophomore Kaitlyn Lankford singled to right to open the inning.
 
"I just told myself to focus," said Hornsby. "I said, 'you've been pitching for 10-plus years. You can do this."
 
But in short order, Hornsby got three straight popups in the infield to quell the threat, and she breezed through the seventh to nail down the victory.
 
The nightcap was a very different contest. After doing little offensively in the opener, Stillman took the lead early, scoring two runs in the top of the first inning off sophomore right-hander Kate Schroeder.
 
With one out, senior Taylor Roland singled up the middle. Schroeder got a strikeout, but senior Madison Bubel singled to rightfield. Roland went to third on the play and scored when the ball was bobbled in the outfield.
 
After a walk, Bubel scored on a single up the middle off the bat of senior Carolyn Carter.
 
Carey did not answer until the third inning, when the Crusaders put up four runs and chased Tiger starter Elisabeth Bosa.
 
Tanner drew a leadoff walk, then senior Rachel Rodriguez hit into a fielder's choice and went to second on a single by Kidder. A walk to West loaded the bases, and that brought on the pitching change, with Wade getting the call out of the bullpen.
 
One run came in on Le Bert's single to left, Kidder scored on a wild pitch and junior Magan Caro put Carey ahead with a two-run single.
 
Schroeder had no issues until the fifth, when the Tigers opened with three consecutive singles, and were helped by a pair of Crusader errors.
 
Senior Bailie Seales led off with an infield single and Bubel followed with another single, and senior Anniston Jones drove in a run with an infield single, bringing Fletcher out of the Carey dugout for his ace.
 
"I warmed up a little bit early in the game," said Hornsby. "I wanted to come in. I'd say around the fourth inning, I decided to go get warmed up. I told my coach I was ready to come in, so I thought I needed to be ready."
 
Hornsby (21-7) allowed a game-tying sacrifice fly off the bat of Carter, and Lankford drove in the go-ahead run on a single to rightfield. Rodriguez threw out the runner on the play, but it was ruled that Caro, the Crusader catcher, obstructed the basepath.
 
Carey's game-winning rally in the bottom of the seventh was accomplished with only one hit, a leadoff single by Kidder, who was immediately erased at second on a force play off the bat of West.
 
That was the first of four consecutive fielder's choice plays – with a critical error in the mix – that resulted in the runs scoring.
 
West reached second by beating out a throw from third on a ground ball by LeBert. Cross followed by hitting a little nubber that Wade bobbled while trying to make a play to third.
 
With the bases loaded, Caro rapped a ground ball to second, but West beat the throw to the plate on the force play for the tying run. With the bases still loaded, Fussell flied out to left, and pinch runner Madison Prejean beat an off-line throw for the game winner.
 
As is usually the case, Carey goes into the conference tournament with a big target on its back. Getting the top seed means a bye through the first round, but otherwise, Fletcher expects a tough tournament. Tournament play begins on Thursday
 
"Everybody's in the same boat, no wins or losses for anybody," Fletcher said. "What we did during the season doesn't matter; it's a whole new season. Top seed does get us a bye, so we'll get a winner who's already played, but still, the bull's eye is on our backs."