Catawba Ridge sweeps South Florence for 4-A softball state championship

Catawba Ridge beat South Florence in a 10-7 slugfest in Game 2 to complete the Copperheads’ sweep of the 4-A state championship series.

It was the first softball state championship for Catawba Ridge, a school in its fourth year of existence.

The Copperheads (25-3-1) trailed 4-3 after three innings. But they scored two runs in the fourth and four more in the sixth.

Audrey Wilson led the way by going 3-for-3 with 2 doubles and 2 RBIs. Braylon Lawrence went 2-for-4 with 3 RBIs as the Copperheads pounded out 12 hits. Sara Rocheleau was 2-for-5 with an RBI. Jenna Gardner was 2-for-4.

Chloe Burger, a USC Upstate commit, went the distance for Catawba Ridge, allowing 9 hits and 5 earned runs with 3 strikeouts.

South Florence’s Payton Perry was 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Larissa Siders was 2-for-4 with a double while Riley Owens was 1-for-3 with an RBI.

Game 1 saw Catawba Ridge pull out a 7-6 walk-off win in eight innings. Jaidyn Harris scored all the way from second on Rocheleau’s two-out infield single.

It was a heartbreaking loss for the Bruins, who had rallied from a 4-0 deficit to take a 6-5 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh.

Burger pitched a complete game despite allowing 10 base runners via walk or hit-by-pitch. She hurled two scoreless innings to end the game.

The Bruins’ Kameron Cotton was 3-for-5 with 2 doubles and 3 RBIs. Sidney Morgan went 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Perry went the distance, allowing eight hits and three earned runs.

South Florence ended the season with a 15-10 record.