East Webster takes care of business in 11-1 win over Lake to clinch MHSAA 2A State Softball Championship

HATTIESBURG — They aren’t just clocking in and cashing paychecks at East Webster softball. They are taking care of business.

The Wolverines made quick work of the defending 2A Champion Lake Friday, beating the Hornets 11-1 in five innings via the 10-run rule to capture the 2022 MHSAA 2A State Championship at the Southern Miss Softball Complex.

The win gave them the series sweep after beating the Hornets 14-1 in five innings in Game 1 Wednesday. It was the eighth state championship for East Webster and first since 2015.

“It’s good seeing a group of girls that do things the right way, day-in and day-out, power through and get the championship,” East Webster coach John Harris said. “The examples of them doing things right go on and on.”

They certainly did Friday.

The Wolverines (28-4) scored five runs in the first, four in the second and two in the third. They broke out the bats for a remarkable 12 hits, drawing two walks.

Lake didn’t help their own cause in the big first inning. The Hornets committed four fielding errors and had a couple other plays that they could have made that were ultimately ruled hits.

On the other side, the East Webster defense was nearly flawless. Pitcher Liz Massey retired nine of the 10 batters she faced in the first three innings while the Wolverines built the 11-0 lead.

Massey’s final line told the story: she gave up one run on four hits, walked none and struck out five. She induced 10 flouts and one groundout.

“Our defense has definitely been our strength,” junior shortstop Peyton Flora said. “That’s what we focus on the most — our pitching and defense — but we’ve really worked hard these past couple of months to get our bats going. We knew if we got to this part of the season, we would need to hit.”

And hit they did. Flora, the leadoff hitter, went 3-for-3 Friday with a triple and scored three runs. She earned MVP honors for her efforts.

Sophomore right fielder Emma Jennings also went 3-for-3, doubled and scored three runs. Second baseman Emma McKee went 2-for-3, drove in a run and scored two herself.

“This team bought into every little thing,” Harris said. “And your ceiling as a team is so much higher at the end of the year when you have that early buy-in. You know what adjustments you need to make and just keep fighting.”

(All photos by Austin Frayser)

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