If the opening games that were played Tuesday evening are any indication, the 2023 Junior High Fall Ball season should be “fan”tastic! Quitman and Weston both played two softball games in Choudrant climaxed by the Lady Wolverines holding off a late Weston charge to take a 6-5 thriller. In earlier contests Quitman beat Choudrant 4-2 and the Lady Wolves slipped past Simsboro in a 8-7 slugfest.

Weston’s Junior High baseball team had the easiest time of all scoring four runs in the second and fourth inning to down Calvin 10-3 in their season opener played at Simsboro. Eli Henderson led the way for the Wolves by reaching base three times and scoring three runs and Leyton Younse got two hits and scored twice. Dawson Griffin also got on base in all three at bats and scored a run while Remy Kennard went 2/2 and scored a run. Colton Otwell, Lukas Bandy and Dane Clifton also chipped in by scoring a run. Bryce Tolar, who pitched the first two innings to get the win, and Kyptin Caskey also got on base once each. 

Quitman 6 Weston 5 (Softball) The Lady Wolverines jumped out to 3-0 and 6-2 leads and then held on for dear life as a last inning Weston rally ran out of time with tying run on third and possible winning run on first. 

Quitman jumped on top by three in the top of the first. Brenna Lamkin got things going with one out by reaching on an error and scoring on back to back ground ball singles by Hallie Kate Pullig and  Kinsley Ponder. Pullig then scored after stealing third and taking home on a throwing error. Amelia Staggs, who had entered the game as a pinch runner for Ponder took third on the same play and then came home on Kynleigh Leach’s ground out. 

Lamkin struck out the side in the bottom of the first but Weston narrowed the deficit to 3-2 the next inning. Rachel Bandy led off with a triple and came home on Carly Jo Griffin’s single who later stole second, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a passed ball. 

The Lady Wolverines increased the lead to 6-2 thanks to a clutch two out double by Ponder that scored Bowers and Lamkin who had singled and walked. Anna Pardue, who had pinch run for Ponder, got the third run of the inning advancing to third and scoring on passed balls. 

That set up the frantic final frame. With one out Davynee Bearden got hit by a pitch leading to back-to-back-to-back singles by Carlynn Waters, Bandy and Griffin and a walk to Anna Shows bringing Weston to within 6-5 and having runners on first and third with still just one out. Bowers, who had come to the mound in relief of Lamkin in the bottom of the third, coaxed a clutch pop out as next the game was called. 

Quitman 4 Choudrant 2 (Softball) Kinsley Ponder and Avery Watson went 2/2 and scored a run and Emma Kate Toms and London Burks got a hit drove in two runs each to lift Quitman to the season opening win. Briley Bowers also got a hit and Charleigh Newton and Anna Pardue scored runs in support of Brenna Lamkin who struck out seven in four innings of work to get the win.  

Weston 8 Simsboro 7 (Softball) Lily Leblanc drove in Gracie Gray with the winning run in the bottom of the final frame after Simsboro had rallied for three runs in the top of the inning to tie it. Weston spotted Simsboro two runs in the top of the first but Davynee Bearden, Carlynn Waters, Rachel Bandy and Carly Jo Griffin all reached base and scored in their first at bat of the year to give the Lady Wolves a 4-2 lead. Anna Shows also reached base in the inning.

Simsboro would tie the score in the top of the second but once again Weston responded, this time with three runs to go up 7-4. Brylee Cuthrell scored the first run in the frame followed by Bearden and Waters both scoring their second run of the contest. Once again Simsboro would rally to draw even at 7-7 setting up the final at bat heroics.