By Kyle Roberts
Three seasons is a long time between district wins.
That drought has finally come to a close after a 9-7 win for the Ruston Bearcats (10-6, 1-0 District 2-5A) over Alexandria Senior High (9-7, 0-1 District 2-5A), despite a furious rally by the visiting team in the top of the seventh inning.
“I’m very excited for our girls,” second-year Ruston High head coach Lauren Garvie said. “Last year, they were right there (in district games). And we kept saying, let’s push a little harder. And tonight, the girls said that we’re not putting up with this anymore– we’re showing people who we are about.
“They hit well tonight. They played well tonight. They deserve all the credit in the world for how hard they have worked.”
Thanks in large part to a seven-run third inning for the Lady Bearcats, the ASH rally would ultimately come up short two runs short. Ruston would score those runs after freshman Gracelyn Underwood first singled to center field to score junior Abby Holton. Senior Murphy DeMoss soon followed with an inside-the-park home run to score herself and senior Cala Wilson. Senior Shelby Freeman would hit a line drive shortly after to center field to score sophomore Sage Tolar, who pitched all seven innings for Ruston.
Ruston junior Morgan Foster would score from third on a ground out to put the Lady Bearcat up 5-0 in the third, and two batters later, Holton would double to right field, which led to Freeman and freshman Jayla Spears both scoring on an error.
Holton doubled again in the bottom of the fifth to score Freeman to extend Ruston’s lead to 8-0.
Wilson would hit a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth in response to ASH scoring two runs in the top of the fifth.
Tolar would face 31 batters on the night in her appearance in the circle.
“Sage has grown so much as a player,” Garvie said. “She’s always been a good player, but I think this year, I’m seeing a different side of her in a way of leadership. That’s big for us, because next year we go from a pitching staff of three to two– and Sage has to be a leader, and I think she’s proving that she’s going to be.”
The Lady Bearcats last district win came on March 30, 2021, in a 7-1 win over Ouachita.
Ruston will return to action Thursday, March 7, at Pineville to continue district play.
