Here is a look at what took place on Thursday in the GHSA fast pitch softball championships in Columbus.
Class AAAAAAAA
Second-ranked Lowndes defeated Parkview 5-1 to advance to the quarterfinals. There the Lady Vikings fell after an 8-2 loss to fourth-ranked Etowah, which reached the quarterfinals by defeating Collins Hill, putting Etowah in the semifinals. Lowndes will await the winner of the Lambert and Archer game in the losers bracket. Lambert and Archer will play Friday at 10 a.m. on Field No. 4 in the losers bracket after losing to Kennesaw Mountain and East Coweta, respectively. Kennesaw Mountain took down Lambert 4-3 but couldn’t take down top-ranked East Coweta, which soundly beat the Lady Mustangs 6-1 after taking out Archer to advance to the semifinals. Kennesaw Mountain will play the winner of the Parkview and Collins Hill matchup Friday in the losers bracket. Parkview will play Collins Hill in the first round of the losers bracket Friday at 10 a.m. on Field No. 3, following their losses to Lowndes and Etowah.
Class AAAAAA
Top-ranked Creekview shut out Houston County 5-0 to advance to the quarterfinals, where it beat defending champion Cambridge 9-1 to earn its semifinal berth. Cambridge, which defeated Greenbrier 6-2 in the first round, awaits the winner of Effingham County and Evans in the losers bracket. Greenbrier and Houston County will face off Friday at 10 a.m. on Field No. 1 in the first round of the losers bracket after falling to Cambridge and Houston County, respectively. No. 5 Pope, which advanced to the quarterfinals after upsetting No. 3 Evans 2-0, fell to Allatoona in the quarterfinals and awaits the winner of Greenbrier and Houston County in the losers bracket. Allatoona beat Effingham County to advance to the quarterfinal game against Pope. After falling to Allatoona, Pope awaits the winner of the Evans and Effingham game Friday at 10 a.m. in the first round of the losers bracket.
Class AAAAA
No. 8 Loganville edged Union Grove 4-3 to reach the quarterfinals but fell 5-4 to No. 7 Locust Grove after Locust Grove’s 6-5 upset over top-ranked Buford. Locust Grove reached the semifinals, and Loganville will wait to play the winner of the Carrollton and Jones County game in the losers bracket. Carrollton and Jones County play Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 4 in the losers bracket after their losses to Wayne County and Walnut Grove, respectively. No. 3 Wayne County defeated No. 4 Carrollton 5-0 and followed with a 7-1 win over Walnut Grove, putting Wayne in the quarterfinals. Walnut Grove, which previously upset No. 6 Jones County 3-1 to advance to the quarterfinals, will meet the winner of the Union Grove and Buford game in the losers bracket. Union Grove and Buford will play Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 3 in the losers bracket after the teams lost to Loganville and Locust Grove.
Class AAAA
Second-ranked Northside-Columbus advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Stephens County 5-1, sending Stephens to the losers bracket. In the quarters, Northside defeated Northwest Whitfield, which advanced after shutting out Eastside 8-0 in Round 1 to make its trip to the semis. Stephens County will play Eastside Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 5 in the losers bracket. Marist dominated Perry in a 14-0 shutout in the first round, putting the Lady War Eagles into the quarterfinals. In the quarters, Marist fell to No. 3 West Laurens 13-3. In the first round, West Laurens soundly defeated No. 6 Madison County 9-4 before earning the semifinal berth against Marist. Perry will meet Madison County Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 6 in the losers bracket, and the winner will face Northwest Whitfield. Marist awaits the Stephens County/Eastside winner in the losers bracket.
Class AAA
Second-ranked Worth County advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating No. 8 Sonoraville by a score of 4-0. Worth advanced to the semifinals after taking down No. 4 Jackson County 4-2, which advanced to the quarterfinals after a 4-2 victory over Pike County. Jackson County will await the winner of the Cook and Rutland game in the losers bracket. Cook and Rutland will face off Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 2 in the losers bracket after falling to Bremen and Calhoun, respectively. Fifth-ranked Bremen defeated Cook by a 5-3 score but lost against top-ranked Calhoun in its quarterfinal matchup. Previously, Calhoun shut out Rutland 8-0 to advance to the quarterfinals. Bremen will play the winner of the Sonoraville and Pike County matchup in the losers bracket. Sonoraville and Pike County will face off Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 1 in the losers bracket after taking losses from Worth County and Jackson County, respectively.
Class AA
No. 6 Monticello beat Bleckley County 12-1 score and followed up by upsetting No. 2 Harlem 11- 0 to reach the semifinals. Harlem, which defeated Banks County 3-2 to get into the quarterfinals, will go against the winner of the Dodge County and Bacon County game in the losers bracket. Dodge County plays Bacon County Friday at 12 p.m. on Field No. 8 in the losers bracket after the teams lost to Rockmart and Armuchee, respectively. Top-ranked Rockmart won a close game against No. 3 Dodge County by a score of 5-4 and kept rolling in its 10-2 win over Armuchee to advance to the semifinals. Armuchee, after beating Bacon County to advance to the quarterfinals, will head to the losers bracket and wait to play the winner of the Bleckley County and Banks County matchup. Bleckley County will play against Banks County Friday at 12 p.m. in the losers bracket after those teams lost to Monticello and Harlem.
Class A-Public
Top-ranked Gordon Lee defeated Georgia Military 7-2 to reach the quarterfinals, where it beat No. 10 Trion 5-1 to reach the semifinals. Trion, which edged No. 7 Marion County by a score of 3-2 to get into the quarterfinals, will await the winner of the Bowdon and Emanuel County Institute game in the losers bracket. Bowdon and ECI will play Friday at 10 a.m. on Field No. 6 in the first round of the losers bracket after losing their games against Mt. Zion and Echols County, respectively. Mt. Zion scored an upset win against No. 3 Bowdon 5-4 and defeated Echols County in their quarterfinals matchup to make the semifinals. Echols, which defeated ECI 4-1 to advance, awaits the Georgia Military and Marion County winner in the losers bracket. Georgia Military and Marion County will play Friday at 10 a.m. on Field No. 5 in the first round of the losers bracket.
Class A-Private
No. 2 Wesleyan defeated Stratford 6-1 to advance to the quarterfinals. There the Lady Wolves defeated No. 6 Prince Avenue Christian 8-0 to move to the semifinals, sending Prince Avenue Christian to the losers bracket. In the semis, Wesleyan will face top-ranked Tattnall Square, which defeated First Presbyterian Day 5-1 to move to the quarterfinals and Eagle’s Landing Christian 11-3 to earn a semifinal berth. Eagle’s Landing Christian, which defeated Mount de Sales 10-2 before falling to Tattnall Square, will face the winner of Stratford Academy and George Walton Academy game in the losers bracket. First Presbyterian Day and Mount de Sales will go head to head Friday at 10 a.m. on Field No. 8 in the first round of the losers bracket, and the winner will face Prince Avenue Christian at 2 p.m. on Friday.
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