Texas Aces High School Highlights

Ward propels Ladycats against El Campo

By Kris Bagley
The Facts

Published April 26, 2008

SUGAR LAND — Dominant pitching and swift defensive plays pushed Angleton past El Campo Friday in the first round of the softball playoffs.

Madisyn Ward held the Lady Ricebirds to two hits through seven innings and earned 13 strikeouts en route to a 3-0 win.

“(Ward) did a good job and kept the ball down,” Angleton head coach Kevin Hurley said. “She made anything they hit, with the exception of a couple of balls, down on the ground for us. She did a wonderful job and we made the plays when we had to.

“It seemed like what they hit was right at us or in range for us to get to. That’s not taking anything away from our infield, we made some good plays. That freshman shortstop (Hayley Galloway) is pretty handy.”

With the win, the Lady Wildcats move on to face Barbers Hill next week.

“They’re a perennial playoff team,” Hurley said. “They are as solid as you’re going to find in 4A. That’s going to be a big test for us. But the other side of that coin is, we’ve been tested throughout our entire district. If you can come out of that, there’s nothing anybody can throw at you that you haven’t seen.”

Friday, that included the pitching style of El Campo’s Emily Bergstrom.

Expected to bring a different approach to face the Lady Wildcats, Angleton connected for seven hits against the left-handed pitcher.

Angleton got on the board early in the second inning.

With runners on second and third base, Chelsea Bryson hit a line drive to center field for an RBI single to score Amber Fisher.

Baylea Wagener followed with a pop out to left field for a sacrifice RBI and brought Michelle Gregory home. The run put the Lady Wildcats up 2-0 before the end of the inning.

Later in the third, Angleton scored its final run. Jessie Reyes ran in on a smart offensive play.

El Campo catcher Lauralee Collins tried to catch Kim Darnian stealing second base. The throw to second gave Reyes plenty of time to move from third to home and make the final score of the night.

El Campo head coach Shane Wagner gave credit to Angleton after the game for winning in a tough game.

“I told the girls ‘I don’t know if they were for the season, but tonight, Angleton was the better team,’” Wagner said. “They were the better team on the field tonight and I think that makes it easier for me to end the season that we lost to the better team.”

Angleton moved to 19-14 on the season with the win.