Wins over Madisonville-North Hopkins on the softball diamond have been few and far between for Caldwell County.
But the Lady Tigers got one Friday night.
Alicia Stanley hit her seventh and eighth home runs of the season to tie Harper Holeman for top team honors. However, Holeman regained the team lead with a two-run shot in the sixth inning, and Caldwell’s girls turned back the Lady Maroons 9-6 at Lady Tiger Field in Princeton.
It was just Caldwell’s second win over Madisonville in the last 40 meetings going back to the 2008 season.
The Lady Tigers did pick up a 6-3 win over the Lady Maroons in 2021, but Madisonville had taken eight straight since then.
The Lady Maroons (14-9 overall, 3-1 district) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on an RBI double by Mackenzie Stoltz.
But Caldwell (15-12, 4-2) tied things in the bottom of the first when Stanley connected for the first of her two homers.
A two-out run-scoring double from Grace Watson on a blooper into right field put Caldwell up 2-1 in the second.
Stanley cleared the left-field fence for the second time in the third inning to give the Lady Tigers a 3-1 advantage.
Caldwell then seemed to take control of the contest with a four-run fifth inning. Caldwell had just two hits in the frame, but got two walks and used two errors to build a 7-1 lead. Brylee Butts’ RBI double was the big hit of the inning.
However, Madisonville countered with a four-run sixth to get right back in the game.
A two-run single by Stoltz was followed by Addy Prow’s two-run homer to left-center. That cut the Caldwell lead to 7-5.
The Lady Tigers picked up two important insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth on Holeman’s homer. That made it 9-5.
That gave Caldwell some breathing room when Jaela Bottoms singled home a run in the top of the seventh to get Madisonville within 9-6. But the Lady Maroons could not get the potential tying run to the plate, as a line drive to center was caught by Caldwell’s Daelen Kizzee to end the game.
Stanley finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs and three runs scored for the Lady Tigers. She was the only Caldwell player with multiple base hits.
For Madisonville, Stoltz went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs. Sadie Kirk was 2-for-4 with a double and Jaela Bottoms also finished 2-for-4.
Alexis Wood was the winning pitcher for Caldwell. She allowed five earned runs on nine base hits while striking out six and not allowing a free pass.
Stoltz suffered the loss for Madisonville. She pitched into the sixth inning before giving way to Kirk.
The Lady Maroons still lead the all-time series 47-19.
Caldwell’s win likely won’t have much impact on the district seedings. Madisonville should still be the No. 1 seed when it hosts the district tourney later this month. Caldwell will be the No. 2 seed.
