Clinging to a one-run lead in a win-or-go-home 8th District Softball Tournament semifinal, Hopkinsville High School took advantage of some costly University Heights Academy miscues Monday and exploded for 12 runs in its final at-bat, as the Tigers earned a staggering 22-12 to eliminate the host No. 2 seed Blazers.
Three-seeded Hoptown, which lost to UHA 5-2 in its lone regular-season meeting May 4, scored twice in the sixth inning and went ahead for good when Daijha Owen’s grounder led to one of 10 Blazer errors and brought home Shaniyah Straight for a 9-7 HHS lead.
After senior Regan Pollard homered in the bottom of the sixth to pull Heights within 9-8 of Hopkinsville, the Tigers roared back for a dozen runs in the seventh to all but put the game out of reach. Straight, who pitched the final 6 2/3 innings in relief, went deep at the plate, laced a pair of doubles, scored a game-high five runs and drove in four more in a clutch dual effort that helped Hoptown advance back to the 8th District final for the first time since 2019.
Every player in the Hopkinsville starting lineup reached base during the dramatic victory. Of the 11 batters who stepped to the plate, nine Tigers scored runs in a game that featured a combined 34 total runs, 4 home runs, 17 hits and 17 errors. University Heights did manage to strike for four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, but the rally fell short.
Pollard, who has been a staple within the local prep softball scene for years, did not go quietly in her final career game. She tossed all seven innings and threw 172 pitches for UHA in the circle; she also finished 2-for-3 with three runs, two walks, two RBIs, a double and the aforementioned homer at the dish.
After Hoptown took a 5-1 lead in the top of the third inning on Taylor Joachim’s two-run home run, the Blazers quickly rallied to go ahead 6-5 on Krista Keller’s bunt attempt that led to a Tiger error and capped a five-run third inning. The teams continued to trade shots and found themselves tied at 7-all at the end of five innings.
In the top of the sixth, Hannah Thorson delivered a one-out single, advanced to second base when Straight was hit by a pitch, took third on Bailee Ladson’s walk and scored on a passed ball to break the tie. Owen followed with the aforementioned two-out ground ball to second that gave Hoptown a bit of breathing room and a two-run advantage with six outs remaining.
The Tigers proceeded to kick down the door, however, by exploding in the seventh. Jakayla Grubbs, who went 1-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs, made it 11-8 with a two-run single to start the onslaught. The next 11 runs came with two outs on the scoreboard, with just three of them coming via hit. Straight’s two-run double made it 21-8; she then scored on UHA’s 10th error to round out the big inning.
Thorson went 2-for-6 with four runs scored. Kaitlyn Kaetzel finished with the same line at the plate, scoring a run. Owen and Joachim combined to go 2-for-9 with four runs and four RBIs. Straight (5-5) got the decision after taking over Thorson with just one out recorded in the first inning.
Junior Trinity Luke homered in the loss for University Heights, finishing 1-for-4 with two runs and and the RBI. Fellow junior Mallory Ladd was 1-for-2 with two runs, a walk and an RBI. The Blazers (7-9) will miss the 2nd Region Tournament for the first time in three years.
Hopkinsville (9-16) will take on No. 1 seed Christian County in the 8th District Championship at 6 p.m. Tuesday at UHA. Regardless of the outcome, both teams will advance to next week’s regional tournament. The Colonels defeated the Tigers 15-0 in three innings back in March, which was the teams’ only other meeting this season. CCHS has won 16 straight 8th District titles.
