A couple of miscues were all the difference for the Lady Bulldogs Wednesday night in a 2-1 loss to district foe Cypress Creek.
The Lady Bulldogs dropped to 1-2 in district play, falling to fourth below Cypress Creek in the seeding for the upcoming district tournament. Zephyrhills stands at 5-10 overall with two games remaining including Tuesday’s senior game against Kathleen at home.
Zephyrhills had seven hits on the night, but could not string enough together to put runs on the board.
Emma-Lei Buchanan led the Bulldogs’ offense going 2-for-4 scoring the only run. Freshman Melanie Moreno had the lone RBI.
Senior pitcher Alex Bowe-Wooten pitched a complete game allowing five hits, two runs and striking out three.
“We had a couple of oopsies and oopsies cause runs,” said Zephyrhills coach Kristen Dumont. “It wasn’t a bad ball game, but we really needed this one. This was a big district game.”
Before the first pitch, the Lady Bulldogs were joined on the field by a team of 6-8-year-old Zephyrhills Little League softball players for player introductions and the National Anthem.
“Being a younger athlete, as I’m only a sophomore, my dream was to always inspire the up and coming young athletes, said sophomore center fielder Laila Wollfolk. “I thought I had to wait until I was older to truly make that happen, but I’m now living my own dream and helping them grow, not only as an athlete, but as an individual.”
It was an experience that made some players nostalgic for the times they started playing and fell in love with the game.
“It’s a good feeling in your chest,” said sophomore catcher Isabella Rivera. “It’s so exciting to see these girls so excited about being on the field. It makes me happy to see girls excited to play softball. They are genuinely excited to be here to make the plays and make the friends.”
Junior left fielder Shyanna Sutton wishes she had the same opportunity when she was a young player. “I think being able to be with them made me think of whenever I was there at their age and think wow, what if I did that with the older girls,” Sutton said. “I would have been inspired and amazed.”