By Michael Lindsay
The DeKalb County Tigerettes kept their undefeated start to the 2024 softball season going Tuesday as they defeated Stone Memorial in Crossville in District 7-3A play, 7-1.
“Defensively, we had three errors, which is not our best defensive game, but our hitting kept us alive,” said DeKalb County head coach Danielle Horton. “We kept chipping away one run at a time.”
Kora Kilgore pitched a complete game for the Tigerettes as she surrendered 3 hits and one walk while striking out 5 in 7 innings.
“Kora pitched a great game,” said Horton. “She knew what she was doing on the mound and it really helped in those tight situations.”
Bryna Pelham and Gracie Randolph led DeKalb County at the plate as they recorded 3 hits each. Pelham went 3-3 with 4 runs scored while Randolph went 3-4 with 3 RBIs and a double.
Randolph’s double came in the top of the first inning, scoring Pelham to give the Tigerettes a 1-0 lead.
Stone Memorial answered in the bottom of the second as a Cami Holbrook single scored Ellie Smith to tie the game at 1 run each.
Pelham scored again in the top of the third to give DeKalb County a 2-1 lead. The Tigerettes tacked on a run in the top of the fifth via a Randolph double to left to score Pelham, making the score 3-1.
DeKalb County shut the door in the top of the seventh as the Tigerettes scored four runs in the frame to take a 7-1 lead before Kilgore sat down the Lady Panthers in order in the bottom of the seventh to seal the 7-1 victory.
DeKalb County improves to 6-0 overall while Stone Memorial falls to 1-2.
“Anything in district is big,” said Horton. “We want to start strong, and having a big win like this is huge. Making sure we continue the momentum through into White County on Thursday is big.”
