Johnson City beat San Saba 20-0, highlighted by senior Madison Marshall’s pair of home runs, in a three-inning game on Monday, April 14 to complete the clean sweep of its district schedule.
The Lady Eagles’ undefeated district campaign has earned it the district championship and a fourth-place ranking in April 15’s Texas Girls Coaches Association ranking among Class 1A and Class 2A schools. The Lady Eagles now look towards the first round of the playoffs– a best of three series against Holland that starts on April 23 in Lago Vista.
“We have a lot of momentum on our side, and I think we’re looking for redemption from the last three years in playoffs,” senior Ava Craig said. “We’re glad that we’re all doing good, we’re being very supportive of each other, and I think that we’ve come together a lot in the past four years.”
The Lady Eagles got to work quickly against San Saba in the final regular season game of the season, scoring 11 runs in the first inning and nine in the second. Behind senior Bo Crownover’s three no-hit shutout innings, Johnson City wrapped up the game after the top of the third inning with a 20-0 win, a margin of victory that the team has achieved several times in the district campaign.
“We’ve been hitting the ball really well this year,” head coach Brent Harris said. “We got to keep this up, keep consistent. If we can do that, we’ll be all right.”
Marshall’s two home runs in the win over San Saba both came in the second inning, with her leading off the inning with a solo shot before hitting a grand slam after the Lady Eagles had batted around to earn her a total of five RBIs, tying for the team lead in the game with junior Sara Kuvet. Sophomore Ema Davis drove in three runs, and no Johnson City batter was struck out in its two innings of offense.
The game against San Saba was the final regular season home game for Johnson City this season. Following the win, the six senior players on the Lady Eagles came together and walked the bases as a unit to commemorate their final time playing in their home ballpark. It marked just the latest time the team has come together as one, and for assistant coach Scott Garcia, its ability to do so has been important to its success.
“I think this group has solidified, being good teammates who support each other when its down,” Garcia said. “We were always trying to pick each other up and be a good teammate.”
Johnson City will take on Holland in the first round of the playoffs. The first game of the series is Wednesday in Lago Vista. Holland finished its district season 10-3, with two losses being to undefeated Thorndale, but is not ranked in the top 25 teams among Class 1A and Class 2A schools. Game two is April 24 and the if necessary game is set for April 25. Johnson City was eliminated in the first round each of the last two years, with Thrall defeating the Lady Eagles last season and Granger the year before. This year, the Lady Eagles look to break the streak against Holland.
“I really don’t think it matters who we’re playing,” senior Kathryn Johnson said following the win over San Saba. “We’re always very disciplined and we’re very competitive.”
