The No. 8 ranked Gilmer Lady Cats clawed opponents for three more region wins last week.
GHS played host for all three matchups, which began Tuesday with the downfall of the White County Warriors, 3-1. The Cherokee Bluff Bears were next on Wednesday and never had a chance in a 16-0 defeat.
The Lady Cats completed the weekly sweep Thursday and extended their winning streak to 10 games when they topped the North Hall Trojans, 5-2.
While GHS continues to come out ahead on the scoreboard, coach Amanda Mullis has noticed some inconsistencies and made adjustments.
“The playing well is from game to game,” she said. “Tuesday we played phenomenal. Defense was on point and everything worked how it was supposed to. Wednesday was a sweep. They played great, adjusted and hit well. But Thursday we didn’t play so great.”
Mullis added, “A lot of the girls are tired. With schoolwork and the heat, and stress is starting to get to them a little. A lot of my problems are, the kids who are virtual are home all day so they’re not active before games like the girls are who are at school. It’s hard for them to come out there and turn it on. We’re making some scheduling adjustments and holding them accountable.”
The game versus White was the least combined runs scored in a Gilmer game this season.
The Warriors’ costly error on a Maddie Wright bunt in the first inning allowed her to advance all the way to third. She crossed home play moments later when Macy Hamby flew out to right field.
White tallied its only run in the fourth with a solo homer to right. GHS reclaimed the lead in the fifth. Jocelyn Birko’s sacrifice bunt advanced Makenzie Taylor to third, who scored on a passed ball.
Hamby crossed home plate for Gilmer’s final run in the sixth when Sarah Stallings flew out.
Isabella Chastain pitched all seven innings for the Cats and struck out nine and allowed four hits.
Chastain was only tasked with pitching two innings versus Cherokee Bluff. The Bears were outclassed from the start and fell behind 9-0 after the first and 16-0 by the end of the second.
The Cats drew nine walks on the day, and when strikes were presented, they tallied eight hits.
Hamby had another potent offensive performance. She drove in seven runs, which included a three-run triple in the first inning and a three-run homer in the second.
Wright had one hit and three RBIs, and Chastain was three for three with one RBI. Stallings and Jacie Bennett both had a hit and Birko collected one RBI.
Chastain allowed two hits and struck out four. Hamby tossed the third and struck out two.
Gilmer and North Hall traded runs through the first three innings. GHS scored two in the first and third and the Trojans plated two in the second inning.
Taylor Elliott singled home Gilmer’s first run and Wright scored on a passed ball for its second. NH added runs on a fielder’s choice and wild pitch.
GHS broke the 2-2 tie in the third when a throwing error allowed the Cats to score two runs. GHS padded its lead in the fourth when Hamby’s triple scored Jasmine Staley.
Chastain lasted 1 1/3 innings and walked two and struck out one. Hamby pitched the remaining 5 2/3, struck out three, walked three and surrendered four hits.
Hamby had two hits on the day, and both Birko and Bennett had one apiece.
“We won this week on bunts,” Mullis said. “We got our bunts down and have finally learned how to field bunts. Those are two main things I wanted to make sure we could do and we’re doing it.”
The Lady Cats are 11-1 on the season and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ranked them No. 8 in Class 3A last Tuesday.
Mullis is less concerned about rankings and more interested in getting GHS to play its best every game.
“We didn’t discuss the ranking but I’m sure they know,” she said. “But that number means nothing. If you look at our schedule, it’s not nearly as tough as those other teams ranked higher than us. I tell them all the time, when we win and we play bad, it makes me mad because I know their potential. I’m trying to get them to understand how easily we can lose.
“We have a tough game next week against White. They want to beat us and could beat us. If we come out with a ‘we’re ranked No. 8’ attitude, it’s not going to work out in our favor.”