Franklin downs St. Joe, faces Liberty for state berth
It came down to some close calls by the umps, and as usual it was a hard-fought game, but in the end, Franklin County edged Port St. Joe 6-5 last week for a chance to down Liberty County in the regional softball championship May 13.
At 7 p.m. in Bristol, the second seeded Lady Seahawks (18-7) were set to face the Lady Bulldogs (20-3), a team they split with during the regular season, a 5-4 loss and a 1-0 win, before falling to them 13-2 in the districts.
On May 8 at home, the Lady Seahawks dug themselves a hole early, allowing three runs in the first, and then another one in the third, when junior Brooklyn Bishop cracked a homer.
Franklin County found its sea legs in the bottom of the third, when senior first baseman Michallyn O’Neal smacked a two-run home run, to score junior Mateah McClendon.
The Lady Seahawks scored two more in the bottom of the fourth, when sophomore Peyton Jones and junior Averie Johnson both singled, senior pitcher Sarah Ham hit a line drive to score Jones.
With the bases loaded, eighth grader Shasta Butler, who had one hit and three runs batted in, was hit by a pitch to tie the game at 4-4.
The Lady Tiger Sharks then turned a double play, one of two on the night, and it was on to the top of the fifth with the score all tied up.
Following a scoreless fifth inning, Port St. Joe pulled ahead 5-4 after sophomore Annie Gainer singled to left, and then stole second.
With two outs, eighth grader Alaina Green hit a ball hard to shortstop, the play could not be made, and Gainer scored the go-ahead run.
Senior pitcher Sarah Ham, who struck out four, walked none, gave up eight hits and three earned runs, then closed out the inning with a K.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Seahawks pulled ahead after senior Charity Larkins singled to left, and Ham careened the ball just off the pitcher’s glove to put men on first and second.
Butler then hit a sacrifice fly that was caught on the warning track, but on the ensuing relays, both runners would score and Franklin County led 6-5.
In the top of the seventh, a close call at the plate would prevent junior Elli Newman from scoring and while coach Derek Garland argued the call, Franklin County had its win.
Coach Dirk Strunk said he was pleased the girls fought back after a lackluster start.
“It looked like we were still in the fog from the Liberty County loss (in the district finals,” he said. “I think in the first inning we left three on base.
“The big thing that we stress to our kids here lately is you got to be patient at the plate,” he said. “Make her earn every strike. Their pitchers are good, and Coach Garland does a heckuva job. They’re a very well coached team, and I’m not gonna lie to you, I was scared to death having to play them for the fourth time after we beat them the previous three. It was a very uncomfortable day, because all I’m thinking I promise you, they’ve studied us so much that they know every inch of everything.”
Strunk said he planned to remind the girls that the two losses to Liberty County are in the past.
“We can’t change anything that happened last week, the only thing we can control is us. The only thing you have control is what you’re doing right here now,” he said. “We have another shot and we’re the underdog. It’s time to get the pitching machine set up full throttle. They have a good pitcher but we got a pretty dang good pitcher too. And we got a good bunch of girls. They stay positive. That’s the key, you got to play with confidence.
“And the biggest thing is, just have fun. Enjoy the moment,” Strunk said. “Leave everything you’ve got on the field, no matter what, and just go out knowing that everything I could do was to be the best I could at that moment.”
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.