Grand Isle edges Reserve in seventh

Published 12:00 am Friday, April 11, 2008

By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

After a wild finish that saw two seventh inning comebacks mounted, the Reserve Christian Lady Eagles found themselves just a hair short of a trip to the postseason.

A three-run seventh inning rally by the Eagles to tie the game fell short when host Grand Isle scored in the bottom half with two outs, seizing a 8-7 win and second place in District 10-C.

The win means that Grand Isle will advance to the playoffs as one of two representatives from 10-C, along with district leader Family Christian.

Aimee Durapau led the Eagles at the plate, going 3-for-5 with two runs scored. Durapau had a single, double, and a triple in the game.

Daysha Blount had two RBIs.

The game saw Reserve lead 3-0 after two innings and 4-2 after four, only to see Grand Isle take command with a five run sixth inning, putting them ahead 7-4 entering the seventh – setting up a final swap of the lead.

“It was a real exciting finish, one of the most exciting that I’ve been a part of,” said RCS Coach Michael Reeves. “The girls were so excited to get back in it. Nobody gave in at any point.”

Madison Reeves (3-7) started for Reserve, and allowed three hits over seven innings. She struck out four in the game, and allowed only one earned run.

But Grand Isle took advantage of a number of walks and errors in the sixth inning to seize control.

Reserve will enter next season having to replace seven seniors. While Coach Reeves admitted it looks like a rebuilding year, he said the Eagles seemed to gain a great deal of confidence this season.

“We had the potential to win a lot more games than we did,” he said. “I don’t know that they knew they could win, without having that kind of success the last few seasons. But I think they know that they can now. Everyone gave a great effort, and they had fun.”