By By BRUCE HIXON – Sports Editor
If members of the Jefferson Davis Community College Lady Warhawks softball team ever wondered what it was like when Cinderella's coach turned into a pumpkin, they found out with one big thud.
JDCC began Saturday's doubleheader at Faulkner State in possession of the fourth and final state tournament qualifying spot. The team also controlled its destiny.
By the time play concluded, JDCC was on the outside looking in the postseason window after a doubleheader loss by scores of 7-6 in the opener and 7-5 in game two. The sweep elevated Faulkner State (11-13 in the Alabama Community College Conference south division and 28-28 overall) past the Lady Warhawks in the standings and clinched the final playoff berth.
The Lady Warhawks, who got a two-run homer by Lakyn Newton in the first inning, stormed back from a 6-2 deficit after five innings in game one. JDCC got an RBI single by Katie Simmons in the sixth that cut the gap to 6-3. The Lady Warhawks tied the game at 6-6 in the top of the seventh when Kayla Galloway came through with a two-run single and Nikki Madden added an RBI single.
Faulkner State was able to win the game in the bottom of the seventh when a key error after a single set up a sacrifice fly.
The Lady Warhawks also dug a hole in game two, as they fell behind 7-2 through four innings. JDCC got two of those runs back on an error and a passed ball in the fifth that cut the gap to 7-4. Stacy Sanders ripped an RBI double in seventh that made it 7-5, but the comeback went no farther.
The Lady Warhawks notched a split Monday at L.B. Wallace. JDCC turned in one of its better games of the season in the opener when it needed just five innings to post an 8-0 win. The Lady Saints rebounded for a 10-4 victory in game two.
Nikki Madden threw a two-hitter and struck out four in a complete game effort in the opener.
JDCC had just a 1-0 lead on Lakyn Newton's first inning RBI double until the top of the fifth inning when it scored its other seven runs. The Lady Warhawks had seven of their 10 hits in that frame. The biggest of those blows came with an RBI double by Kayla Galloway, a two-run double by Stacy Sanders, a two-run triple by Makeyia Burt and an RBI single by Katie Simmons.
JDCC (9-14 in the ACCC and 19-33 overall) took a brief 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning of game two when Kayla Galloway delivered an RBI single and Madden added an RBI groundout.
LB Wallace (14-10 in the ACCC and 28-18 overall) erased that lead with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the inning and took a 4-2 lead with two more runs one inning later.
RBI singles by Burt and Carleen Clark brought the Lady Warhawks even at 4-4 in the top of the fourth, but the Lady Saints regained the lead with a three-run rally in the bottom of the fourth. LB Wallace added some insurance in the bottom of the sixth when it plated three more runs.
Saturday's game one
JDCC 200 001 3 – 6 11 4
Faulkner St. 021 030 1 – 7 8 2
Game two
JDCC 100 120 1 – 5 9 2
Faulkner St. 014 200 X – 7 9 2
Monday's game one
JDCC 100 07 – 8 10 0
LB Wallace 000 00 – 0 2 2
Game two
JDCC 200 200 0 – 4 8 0
LB Wallace 220 303 X – 10 12 1