Knights wipe out Wave

Stratford 1, Summerville 0

GOOSE CREEK — Stratford's Jordan Smith stepped into the batter's box with the same catchphrase running through her mind over and over.

"It's time to senior up," Knights coach Debra Tolar reminds her oldest players on a daily basis.

Moments later, Smith delivered a hard-hit single up the middle with two strikes and two outs that plated courtesy runner Lauren Moore in the bottom of the sixth inning, lifting Stratford to a 1-0 victory over rival Summerville in the District 7 championship softball game Thursday.

"My previous two at-bats I felt like I could do better because I was trying to pull the ball," said Smith, a Limestone signee. "I went back to what coach had been telling me all year about watching the ball come from the hip. ... It was my time to step up and I needed to right then."

Summerville (23-9) had a chance to cut down Moore at the plate but the incoming throw from centerfielder Sara Montei was too high. Moore was running for Cristy Hudson, who doubled to center field with one out. Hudson was the only Stratford player with two hits in the game.

Stratford (28-3) moves on to meet District 8 winner Colleton County in the Lower State bracket Saturday. The two teams met earlier this spring in Walterboro, with Stratford knocking off the Cougars 4-2.

Berkeley and two-time defending champion South Florence are the other two teams in the Lower State bracket.

The Green Wave had its chances, as it had runners on second and third with one out in the top of the sixth inning, but a pair of nice defensive plays kept Summerville off the board.

Stratford pitcher Caroline Pastre (21-3) fielded a grounder from Rochelle Lyda and fired home to catch a sliding Ashley Muckelvaney for the second out. Summerville's Malori Myers then blasted one through the right side of the infield, seemingly pushing across the game's first run, but Stratford right fielder Casey Miller came up firing to first for another out.

"It basically comes down to a call at the plate that could have gone either way," Summerville coach Heather Tucker said. "We knew it was going to be a tight one like that."

Tucker's team, which only graduates three seniors, got the tying run in position to score in the top of the seventh but Pastre recorded a strikeout and groundout to end it. She scattered four hits and struck out four batters in the win.

Myers scattered seven hits and struck out four batters, while Muckelvaney was the only Lady Green Wave player with two hits.