Warlassies fall to Southwestern Randolph in third round

Owen softball winning streak snapped in 3-0 loss

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
May 17, 2024

A winning streak that began two months prior ended, May 16, as the Owen Warlassies fell to Southwestern Randolph in the third round of the 2024 NHCSAA 2A State Softball Playoffs.

The 3-0 loss marked the first time the Owen offense was held scoreless this season.

The No. 5 seed Warlassies faced junior pitcher Macie Crutchfield and the No. 4 Cougars in a matchup that had been delayed two days, due to heavy rain in the area. The recently red hot Owen bats struggled throughout the contest.

Southwestern Randolph established a lead in the bottom of the first inning, plating a pair of runs against Owen starting pitcher Sophie Neal. The Cougars added another run in the third.

The Warlassies scattered 3 hits in the contest, as Crutchfield held the lineup in check throughout the contest.

“Their pitcher had a funky release, and the girls had a hard time adjusting early in the night,” Owen head coach Pete Ledford said. “By the time we started to adjust, it was just too late.”

The hitting performance was a sharp contrast to the Warlassies lineup that produced 70 runs in its previous 10 games.

“The two nights this game had been rained out, we had probably our best two practices of the season,” Ledford said. “But, I think once we were down by 3 runs early, against a really a good team, that pressure just continued to mount every inning.”

Owen finished the campaign with a 20-3 overall record and the program’s first Western Highlands Conference Championship in over a decade. The vast majority of the roster, which features seven freshmen, three sophomores, three juniors and one freshman, Tinley Clark, will return next season.

“Obviously, the girls really wanted to get that win for TInley, as much as anything, but it’s hard not to excited for the future of this program,” said Ledoford, who completed his fourth season as head coach. “They had a tremendous season, they really set the standard for the next four or five years. Our fans have been out there cheering us on this year and the community is really behind these girls, so they have a reason to hold their heads high.”

Photos of the Owen Warlassies third round playoff game against Southwestern Randolph can be viewed in the gallery at the top of the page.