Chipley, Holmes County softball duos lead West to rout of East

PANAMA CITY — The sixth annual Panhandle Softball Classic hosted by Bay on Friday truly was a showcase of high school talent in Northwest Florida.

It’s just that the lines between East and West were blurred somewhat in the West’s 13-2 victory.

Organizer Starr Athletics couldn’t be blamed too much for that, as Pensacola schools won’t graduate for at least another week, and four seniors from Niceville’s Class 5A state championship team were attending a college showcase.

Therefore players from Chipley and Holmes County were needed to help round out the West squad, and pitcher Addi Dozier of Florida High was drafted off the East to enable the West to field a full team.

While Dannica Mosher of Freeport was a standout with a single, three doubles, two runs scored and an RBI, and Jacey Sanders of Crestview led all players with three RBIs, the contribution from Leon, Holmes and Washington counties was notable for the winners.

Holmes County’s Jenna Lee Belser and Carley Sue Long, and Chipley’s Erin Solger and JoAnna Peters combined for 13 of the West’s 21 hits and scored eight runs. Just as notable was Dozier, who earlier had won the Home Run Derby.

Dozier pitched all nine innings for the West, allowing six hits and one earned run while striking out 10.

That said, the East led 2-0 early, and it was a 3-2 game entering the seventh inning. The West pounded 13 hits from that point, six consecutively in the eighth inning as the contest was played to nine innings and the mercy rule was not in force.

The finish belied a highly competitive game in the beginning. Mosley right-hander Meagan Creel started and tossed three shutout innings, 33 of her 41 pitches for strikes.

Dozier, who walked seven, was wild early and catcher Belser had difficulty corralling some of her offerings. Maryann Klein of Arnold singled in the second and came around on a combination of wild pitches and passed balls, and Kristi Davis of Port St. Joe walked and scored an unearned run for the 2-0 edge in the third.

Belser atoned by erasing three baserunners trying to steal second, and second baseman Peters made two outstanding stabs of balls hit by Mosley’s Aubrey Browne heading for right field.

Each saved a run, and made up for her error in the third that enabled Davis to score.

Creel wasn’t nearly as effective when she re-entered in the seventh inning after the West had edged ahead against Gina Mathes of Rutherford. She also was the lone East player with two hits, narrowly missing a home run in the eighth when her long drive glanced off the right-field fence for a double.

• West 000 102 442 — 13 21 1
• East 101 000 000 — 2 6 2
• Dozier and Belser; Creel, Mathes (4), Creel (7), Mathes (8), Benefield (8) and Starr.
• LOB: West 12, East 9. E: Silcox, Creel, Peters. 2B: Mosher 3, Sanders, Belser, Long, Ostrovsky, Creel. RBI: Sanders 3, Belser 2, Solger 2, Mosher, Long. SAC: Harris 2, Solger. SF: Sanders. SB: Martin 2, Solger, Belser. CS: By Belser (Benefield, Starr, Klein). By Starr (Solger).