Warlassies fall for the first time in the WHC this season

Madison tops Owen, 9-1

Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
April 13, 2021

The lone remaining undefeated softball team in the Western Highlands Conference earned its first loss of the season, April 12, as Madison came to Owen.

Despite a seventh-inning home run by sophomore pitcher Addison Bartlett, the Patriots were dominant in the 9-1 victory.

The young Warlassies entered the contest with a 3-0 conference record and 3-1 overall mark, with their only loss of the season coming March 27 to Brevard. The Owen roster includes only three seniors and is led by a new coaching staff filled with familiar faces.

Pete Ledford takes over a squad that played only three games in 2019 after the COVID-19 pandemic cut the 2020 spring athletic season short. He is joined in the dugout by assistant coach Joey Valencia and former Owen softball standouts Caitlyn Ledford and Ashley Valencia.

Ashley, the daughter of Joey, batted .463 with 7 home runs and 70 RBI in four seasons with the Warlassies. The southpaw catcher, a multi-sport star at Owen, continued her softball career at Pensacola State, where she hit .365 with 6 home runs and 40 RBI from 2018-2020.

Caitlyn, the daughter of the first-year head coach and four-year teammate of Ashley, hit .383 with 5 home runs and 78 RBI before graduating in 2018.

The Warlassies opened the season 2-0 with a 10-0 victory over Mitchell and 11-0 win over Polk. The team improved to 3-1, March 29, after scoring 7 runs in extra innings to dispatch Mountain Heritage. The Cougars responded by handing Madison its first conference loss of the season, March 30.

The Patriots scored a run in the first and second innings Monday at Owen, while senior pitcher Sadie Worley held the Warlassies to only 2 hits. Madison added to its lead with a run in the fifth and 4 runs in the sixth before adding 2 more in the top of the seventh. The visiting team carried a 9-0 lead into the final inning when Bartlett drove her first home run of the season to center field to give the Warlassies their only run.

Owen, one of three Western Highlands teams with one conference loss, will travel to Mitchell, Wednesday, April 14 and Polk, Monday, April 19.

The Warlassies will host Mountain Heritage, Wednesday, April 21.

To see photos of Monday’s game between Owen and Madison, view the gallery below.