COLUMBUS — Kayla Floor has battled a left quadriceps injury for most of her senior year in softball at Collins Hill, but she wasn’t going to let it get in the way of finishing the job.
The senior right-hander gutted out the Class AAAAA championship Saturday, pitching a complete game in a 6-4 win over Mill Creek, giving Collins Hill (29-7) its third consecutive state title.
“It was hurting a lot,” said Floor, who allowed nine hits. “I just had to pull through.”
After allowing a two-run opposite-field home run to Mill Creek’s Chandler Griffin in the top of the seventh and then giving up a walk to bring the tying run to the plate, Floor received a visit from Collins Hill coach Paul Pierce.
“I just told her we’re in a good place,” Pierce said. “We’ve been here before, and she knows what to do. We wanted to work ahead and get a couple of ground balls and get out of it.”
It wasn’t exactly like that, but Floor closed the deal, striking out Morgan Bell and getting Breanna Buckley to pop out to second to secure the title.
“It was frustrating because I was missing my spots,” Floor said. “There’s a lot of pressure with runners on base.”
Mill Creek’s Nikki Sagermann belted a two-run homer in the first inning to give the Lady Hawks the early lead, but Collins Hill pulled even with single runs in the second and third. Brittany Roley hit an RBI single in the second, and Calli Star scored on an error to tie the game in the third.
Roley singled and scored the go-ahead run in the fourth, and McKenzie Halstead’s two-run single in the fifth put the game out of reach.
In other classifications:
Class AAAA
Northgate got an RBI fielder’s choice from Jamie Fever, scoring Katie Sachs in the top of the eighth inning, giving the Lady Vikings (28-6) a 4-3 win over Whitewater for the state championship.
Andie Martin belted a three-run homer for Northgate in the first inning.
“It’s awesome,” Martin said. “I just kept my focus the whole time. It’s a special game, but you just have to focus on what you’re doing.”
The lead held up until the fourth, when Whitewater scored a pair of runs to pull even.
Whitewater got a home run from Mackenzie Toler in the first and RBI singles from Samantha Wilt and Peyton Roth to pull even.
Class AAA
Oconee County (38-2) completed an unblemished run through the state finals tournament, defeating West Laurens 2-0 for the title.
It was the eighth championship for the Lady Warriors, who got nine strikeouts from Courtney Poole. Savannah Stoker delivered an RBI single in the fourth inning, and Brianna Dickens an RBI double in the fifth for the Lady Warriors, whose most recent championship was in 2008.
Class AA
Buford came out of the loser’s bracket to win its fifth consecutive championship, beating Pike County twice. The Lady Wolves overcame a late five-run deficit to beat Pike County 11-10 in the first game then routed the Lady Pirates 12-2 to finish off the championship.
In the clincher, Kallie Case belted two homers, one to lead off the game and another in a five-run third.
The Lady Wolves (34-11) got homers from Lexi Overstreet and Madyson Wynegar in a four-run fourth, building a 10-2 lead. They added two more runs in the fifth and won under the mercy rule.
“That first game was the most intense game I’ve ever been a part of,” said Case, who was 3-for-3 with a walk and four runs scored in the finale. “In the first inning, that was just one little run, but I think it set the tone.”
In the first game, Pike led 5-0 and 8-3 before Buford rallied to win.
Class A
Brenna Nation belted a two-run homer in a three-run first inning for Gordon Lee, which beat Wesleyan 6-1 for the championship, the second consecutive for the Lady Trojans (36-1).
Sam Taylor added an RBI single in a two-run second for Gordon Lee, which outscored its four opponents in the state finals tournament 33-4.
Nation struck out seven and allowed six hits in the win.
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