Lady Warriors win softball game for injured teammate

The Nansemond River softball team took the home field on Friday against Deep Creek High School for their third game in as many days. They were fresh off, not only their first loss of the season, but also the loss of senior Eryn Haley, who was injured during Thursday’s game.

The Lady Warriors fought to win with Haley in mind and scored in nearly every inning to secure a 9-3 victory against the Lady Hornets.

“We really did it for Eryn, because we really needed to show her that even though we lost her, it’s OK, because we can stay strong and we do it for her,” Morgan Lowers said.

On Thursday against Hickory, Lauren Maddrey struggled from the mound, and Haley came in to relieve her. She had successfully shut down the Lady Hawks for two innings when she was struck in the face by a line drive, without any protective headgear on.

The injury was serious, resulting in facial fractures, but her father, Scott Haley, said she is doing well, and the pathway seems clear to a full recovery without the need for surgery.

“Thanks to everyone it proves after that violence of an injury, prayer is the best medicine,” he said.

After the injury, the Lady Warriors were unable to keep Hickory at bay, losing 16-6.

On Friday, however, they never trailed. In the third inning, KateLynn Hodgkiss achieved a rare feat. She hit a short bunt along the left baseline that went almost nowhere. The Deep Creek first baseman did not catch the throw, giving Hodgkiss the opportunity to get to first, then second, then third and then home.

“They were just telling me that I needed to get the ball down, and just get on base,” she said. “We needed base runners, so I just had to fulfill my duty, and I did.”

She ended up with two hits and 4 RBIs.

In the fifth inning, some defensive errors let the Lady Hornets back into the game. Nevertheless, Lowers, who was 4-for-4 with a run batted in and a double, said Nansemond River is confident it can can generate runs to win innings.

“If they would’ve gotten another run, it may have been a different story, but I know our heads would have stayed up, and we wouldn’t have given up, and especially having Eryn in our heart, we know we would have gotten it,” she said.

Jac Mounie was busy as shortstop, coming up with a several key catches for outs during the game.

“I just feel like that’s what I was there to do — make plays, get it done, so we could win this game,” she said. “I feel like we all came together as a team,” she said. “This was a team (contribution), and we all wanted to do this for Eryn and we wanted this one in the book.”

The Lady Warriors (4-1, 4-1) travel across town to play King’s Fork High School on Tuesday.