Junior Maylyn Wallace picks up a hit during Monday’s game against Pinecrest.
                                 Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

Junior Maylyn Wallace picks up a hit during Monday’s game against Pinecrest.

Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

<p>Senior Payton Chappell crosses home plate to score a run for the Lady Raiders during Monday’s game against Pinecrest.</p>
                                 <p>Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal</p>

Senior Payton Chappell crosses home plate to score a run for the Lady Raiders during Monday’s game against Pinecrest.

Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

<p>Prior to the game, Richmond dedicated its field and new indoor hitting facility to two former coaches, Paula I. York (far left) and Wendy H. Wallace (far right). The field is now rechristened Paula I. York Field, while the hitting facility is now the Wendy H. Wallace Softball Facility.</p>
                                 <p>Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal</p>

Prior to the game, Richmond dedicated its field and new indoor hitting facility to two former coaches, Paula I. York (far left) and Wendy H. Wallace (far right). The field is now rechristened Paula I. York Field, while the hitting facility is now the Wendy H. Wallace Softball Facility.

Neel Madhavan | Daily Journal

ROCKINGHAM — Having already made two comebacks in the game, the Richmond Senior High School varsity softball team needed one more comeback if it wanted to defeat Pinecrest Monday night.

The Lady Raiders had already clawed back from a 4-0 deficit and a 6-3 deficit against the Patriots. Heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, Pinecrest held a slight 8-7 advantage after scoring two runs in the top of the seventh to retake the lead from the Lady Raiders.

Richmond went three-up, three-down in the bottom of the sixth, but now it was back to the top of the batting order with junior Allyiah Swiney stepping to the plate with the Lady Raiders needing a run to tie and two runs to win.

First pitch, nothing. Then, on the second pitch, Swiney cracked a solo home run right down center field to tie the game. Swiney said stepping to the plate, she was just trying to be patient to just try to get on base, but the opportunity presented itself and she took advantage.

“(Pinecrest pitcher Emily Jones) had been throwing me inside all game, so I knew I had to sit down and wait on that inside pitch,” Swiney said. “But, then she happened to throw it down the middle so I knew I just had to sit, sit and just hit it.”

Swiney tying the game changed the team’s approach since it now just needed a run to win.

“The good part was that we were at the top of the lineup,” said head coach Mike Way. “So I felt pretty comfortable about scratching out one run, but obviously when you hit it out to tie the game, it’s a whole different animal because then you’re trying to scratch one run out to win the game.”

Up next was junior Kenleigh Frye. With a tie game and no outs, Frye said her focus was also just to get on base. But, instead, she drilled a line-drive walk-off solo home run over center field to win the game for the Lady Raiders 9-8.

“It felt great,” Frye said. “I’m not a home run hitter, so when they happen, it feels good.”

Way on the plan at bat going into that final inning?

“Not that,” he said.

“I was trying to figure out how to get a base runner on and they had different ideas,” Way continued. “But, the main thing was Allyiah and Kenleigh both changed their approach mid game which is what you have to do to adjust to what the pitchers do.”

Way said he thought the team spent the first four innings trying to do too much at the plate, trying to hit home runs and thinking they needed to be hitting harder, rather than being patient and making the swings and hits as they come.

“Those last three innings, we adjusted to that and it made all the difference in the game,” he said.

To go along with Swiney and Frye’s home runs, senior Payton Chappell finished with two doubles and two RBIs. Sophomore Macy Steen, junior Maylyn Wallace, sophomore Quston Leviner and senior Paige Ransom each also added an RBI.

One of the reasons Richmond faced so many deficits in the game were some issues in the pitching circle.

Ransom started the game, but gave up four runs off five hits in the first two innings. Leviner came in at the start of the third inning in relief and pitched the rest of the game.

Despite Leviner keeping Pinecrest hitless and scoreless in the third, fifth and sixth innings, the Lady Patriots racked up seven hits and four runs in the fourth and seventh innings, which allowed them to build leads the Richmond batters would have to overcome.

“You’re going to have nights like that,” Way said. “Neither one of them had their best stuff. We’ve been fortunate in several games that at least one or the other was able to carry the weight. But, (Monday) they both were not really on top of their game.”

Ransom finished with two strikeouts, while Leviner had five. However, the Lady Raiders are missing their third pitcher in senior Kearston Bruce, who has been out with an injury, which puts more of the pitching weight on Ransom and Leviner’s shoulders.

“Both of them dug in and did what they had to do in order to get the outs when we needed them to keep us in the game,” Way said. “I have to be honest, it was a different kind of game than I was expecting, but it’s still good to be able to keep you in the game and give you a chance to win it.”

Prior to the game, Richmond dedicated its field and new indoor hitting facility to two former coaches, Paula I. York and Wendy H. Wallace. The field is now rechristened Paula I. York Field, while the hitting facility is now the Wendy H. Wallace Softball Facility.

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Reach Neel Madhavan at 910-817-2675 ext. 2751 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter at @NeelMadhavan.