GAME ONE

The Shelbyville Central Golden Eaglettes took care of the visiting Nashville Lady Knights on Saturday, 9-0, during their “Strike Out Cancer” game on Saturday before walking off Spring Hill, 9-6, on Monday night.

Alyvia Smith, a former Eaglettes’ softball player that graduated in 2023, threw out the first pitch Saturday after beating non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and being declared cancer free on March 18, 2024. She was honored pregame, and she was brought to tears after her story was read over the PA system while she was in the circle. 

After Alyvia was honored, Sammie Brown got the start in the circle for the Eaglettes, and she went four complete innings, only giving up one hit while striking out five batters with only one walk on 51 pitches. She also hit a leadoff home run to right-center field as part of a three-hit night that also included a double. 

The Eaglettes’ bats were hot all around, plating nine runs in a game that was never really close to pick up their third win of the season.

GAME TWO

In Shelbyville Central’s District 9-AAAA matchup against the visiting Spring Hill Lady Raiders, Ali Rippy hit a grand slam to center field to turn a 6-5 deficit into a 9-6 victory on Monday. 

Spring Hill jumped out to an early 4-0 lead through the first four innings against starter Sammie Brown, but the Eaglettes’ bats plated a trio of runs in the bottom of the fourth to cut into the lead. 

Brown went seven complete innings, giving up only five hits while striking out nine batters and walking three. Of the six runs surrendered, only two of them were earned, as the Eaglettes overcame six fielding errors. 

The Eaglettes scored another run in the fifth to tie the game at 4-4, and each team would trade one run apiece for the next three half-innings before Rippy’s grand slam. 

Sydney Moore and October Dresback led Shelbyville at the plate with both going 3-4 with one RBI apiece. Lilly Brown recorded a hit and a RBI while Bailey Dunn drove home two runs on her one hit in the fourth inning. Rippy’s grand slam was her only hit of the game.

The Eaglettes tallied 11 hits total compared to Spring Hill’s five hits.

Shelbyville Central improves to 4-8 overall and will continue district play against Coffee County on Wednesday.