The DeKalb County High School softball team continued their magical season May 11 with a 6-1 Region Tournament win over the visiting 15-10 Grundy County Lady Jackets.
At Danny Bond Field in Smithville, the Tigerettes played some small ball to come out with a big victory. After two scoreless innings, the Tigerettes sparked by two bunts lit up the score board to take a 6-0 lead. The fifth inning saw Grundy County get on the score board with an RBI double by Madison Burrows to make the score 6-1. However, that was as close as the Lady Jackets would get as the Tigerette’s defense stiffened allowing only one runner to reach a base the rest of the game.
Starting Tigerette pitcher Kayley Caplinger was outstanding going seven innings allowing one run on four hits with nine strike-outs while surrendering just one walk to get the win.
Tyra Graham and Kayley Caplinger both belted a double, while Dani Meadows, Katie Hall, Lexi Bates and Miranda Bailiff each singled.
Miranda Bailiff and Kayley Caplinger had two RBIs with Maddie Dickens and Loren Cripps each recorded one for DeKalb.
With a 6-1 victory over visiting Grundy County May 11, the Tigerettes advanced to the Region Championship facing a familiar foe in Macon County. DeKalb cruised to a 3-0 win in a game that was never in any doubt.
With starting pitcher Kayley Caplinger at the helm, three runs would be all she needed. In the complete game shut-out Caplinger gave up five hits while striking out eight with no walks.
DeKalb’s defense was a bit shaky giving up three errors in the game, but the Tigerettes would not be denied sending the Macon County Lady Tigers home with the loss.
Tyra Graham and Kayley Caplinger each belted a double. Loren Cripps had a single and a double. Hannah Walker had two singles with Katie Hall and Miranda Bailiff each recording one single for the Tigerettes.
With the win, DeKalb won the right to host the Sub-State game that was played on May 15 versus Polk County.
In what could be regarded as one of the most memorable games in Tigerette history, DeKalb’s Miranda Bailiff, with her team down 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning to Polk County, blasted a grand-slam homerun over the center field fence that propelled the Tigerettes to their second straight state tournament birth and seventh over-all while sending the hometown crowd into a frenzy.
Polk County seemed to be in control early on in the game scoring in the top of the first inning on a no-doubter solo homerun to put the score at 1-0.
After a scoreless second, DeKalb behind three consecutive bunts tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the third inning.
Senior Loren Cripps executed a perfect suicide squeeze that plated Lexi Bates putting the Tigerettes right back into the ballgame. However, Polk County seemingly wrestled away all momentum from DeKalb scoring three runs to retake the lead 4-1 in the top of the fourth.
Powered by Dani Meadows’ lead-off double in the bottom of the fourth, the Tigerettes managed to cut into the Polk County lead, scoring one run to bring the score to 4-2.
In the bottom of the sixth, and after one and one-half scoreless innings in which both teams appeared to be recovering from shell-shock, DeKalb’s Kaley Caplinger’s hit was the first of three consecutive singles rattled off by the Tigerettes that set-up Bailiff’s historic blast to give the home team the lead for the first time in the game with a score of 6-4.
With the lead Tigerette’s starting pitcher Kayley Caplinger went back to work in the top of the seventh inning to secure the win with her ninth strike-out of the game.
Caplinger faced 28 batters through seven innings giving up four runs on seven hits with nine strike-outs and no walks to post the win for the Tigerettes.
Miranda Bailiff led the way for the Tigerettes with a single and a grand slam homerun with five RBIs. Dani Meadows nailed a single and double. Loren Cripps, DeKalb’s only senior, pitched in with a single and an RBI while Lexi Bates, Kaley Caplinger and Katie Hall each tallied a single.
With the win the 2015 Tigerette squad matched the 1992 and 1994 teams as the programs only championship winners of the regular season district, district tournament, region tournament and the sub-state game while advancing to the state tournament.
The Tigerettes took their 27-6 record into the state tournament in Murfreesboro May 19 taking on 20-14 Chattanooga Central in the first round. The game was still in progress at press time. Stay tuned for the results in next week’s issue of the Smithville Review.
Good luck Tigerettes!
