Sturgeon's blast helps send Mustangs to 3A finals
MANTACHIE – Blayne Sturgeon’s hard work paid off in a most timely fashion Friday night.
The junior catcher’s solo home run proved to be the difference, lifting Mantachie to a 3-2 win over Kossuth and a sweep of the Class 3A North finals.
Sturgeon’s blast to right-center in the fifth inning extended Mantachie’s lead to 3-1. It was her third homer of the season.
“We took a kid last year that really, really struggled at the plate, has worked tail off in hitting lessons, worked her tail off in the cage. We went from striking out a lot to making contact a lot,” Mantachie coach Kristi Montgomery said.
Kossuth (25-6) got a run back in the sixth on an RBI single by Victoria Fields. It could have been a bigger inning, but a baserunner was called out after tagging up too early on a flyout.
The Aggies did not go quietly in the seventh, putting two on with one out. But pitcher Ramsey Montgomery was able to escape trouble.
Montgomery scattered seven hits, struck out 10 and walked two.
“She pitched the best game I think I’ve ever seen her pitch after catching her since eighth grade,” Sturgeon said. “It’s the best time, and we’re about to go win some state.”
Montgomery and her Kossuth counterpart, Maddie Mask, both cruised through the first three innings. The Mustangs (31-5) broke through in the fourth with two runs.
Kossuth cut the lead to 2-1 in the fifth on Chloe Clement’s RBI groundout. And then in the bottom half, Sturgeon swung at a 2-2 pitch over the outer half of the plate and sent it out. She said the key to facing Mask was attacking pitches on the outer half.
“We worked on that all week – just keeping our shoulders down and not pulling open. It’s the difference of a ballgame.”
Mantachie will face St. Patrick next week in Hattiesburg for the 3A title.
Extra Bases
Big Inning: Allie Ensey led off the fourth with a double, and then Lillianna Cates doubled to drive in a run. Montgomery later scored on a wild pitch for a 2-0 lead.
Big Stat: Three of Mantachie’s four hits went for extra bases.
Coach Speak: “We didn’t get 50/50 calls in this game. We battled our butt off. Great team over there. We wish them all the best.” – Kossuth’s Brandon Bobo
