The Choctaw County softball team split two games at a jamboree hosted by Kosciusko with a 14-6 victory over Leake Central and a 19-1 loss to the host team.
Caden Miles led the Lady Charger offense against Leake Central with a single, double and four RBIs. Alexa Patterson had a double and drove in a run, Makenzie Sanders a single and an RBI, Calla Gammill a single, Molly Thomas drove in two runs and Sierra Jones had an RBI.
Mayee Hollis and Atleigh Hollingworth handled the pitching, each with two strikeouts.
Thomas had two singles in the loss to Kosciusko. Gammill scored the Lady Chargers' run as a courtesy runner for Thomas. Miles and Hailey Miller each had a hit.
Choctaw County will host Leake Central at 3:15 Saturday at the Choctaw County Classic.
Lady Panthers optimistic about
softball season
By Laurence Hilliard
Choctaw Plaindealer
There is reason for optimism as the French Camp softball team prepares to open the 2020 season Saturday with a doubleheader at Louisville.
Coach Todd Chesser feels his team will have solid pitching and defense. Hitting could be a question mark, but the Lady Panthers offense will be aided by a hard-hitting transfer.
Marley Sims joins the team as a transfer from West Harrison, where she batted over .500 last year as a sophomore. “She played slow pitch for us and was a big help at shortstop,” Chesser said. She will be at the same position in fast pitch.
French Camp returns the top two pitchers from a year ago, Brianna Grice, a senior, and Aubrey Burrell, a sophomore. When not on the mound. Grice will see action at second and Burrell at first. When Grice is pitching, she will form a battery with her sister Maci, a sophomore.
“I'm expecting big things from her behind the plate,” Chesser said of Maci Grice. “I've challenged her to be the general on the team to make sure everybody is in the right spot.”
Other key players include sophomore Abby Leathers at third, senior Haleigh Outlaw, infield and outfield, and senior Katarina Hanten, who will be a utility player. Hanten played for the Lady Panthers as a sophomore, but sat out last year for medical reasons.
French Camp will compete in Region 5-1A with Ethel, Nanih Waiya, Noxapater and West Lowndes. Ethel, the defending champion, reached the South State finals a year ago and was pegged by Chesser as the team to beat.
