Hanson Lady Tigers edge Grand Lake, earn berth in state tournament

GRAND LAKE — The No. 11 seeded Hanson Memorial Lady Tigers are headed back to the state tournament after earning a 5-4 Class 1-A victory over No. 6 seeded Grand Lake Lady Hornets here Friday in the Class A regionals.
Hanson starting pitcher Sarah Sonnier earned the mound win, tossing seven complete innings, allowing one earned run on seven hits with four strikeouts and four walks.
Hanson (19-7) will advance to the Louisiana High School Athletic Association Fast Pitch 56 State Softball Tournament against third-seeded Ascension Catholic on Friday at 2 p.m. in the quarterfinals at Sulphur’s Frasch Park.
Grand Lake broke a scoreless tie with two runs in the bottom half of the first inning for a 2-0 advantage. The Hanson Lady Tigers trimmed Grand Lake’s lead to 2-1 in the top half of the second frame. Hanson struck for three more runs in the top half of the fifth inning, building a 4-2 cushion. Grand Lake knotted the game at 4-4 with two runs in the fifth inning. The Hanson Lady Tigers notched their game-winning run in the top half of the sixth inning en route to the thrilling 5-4 victory over Grand Lake.
Sonnier led the Lady Tigers to the victory by another exceptional mound performance. She threw 98 on pitches on the day, including 62 strikes. She allowed only one earned run on four hits with four strikeouts and four walks. Sonnier outdueled Grand Lake pitcher Blair Little for the win. Little went the distance, giving up five runs on nine hits with one strikeout and two walks.
Hanson batters Alyssa Young, Paige Diamond, Ashley Champagne and Noel Baker all hit doubles for the Lady Tigers.
Leading hitters for HMS were: Alyssa Young, 1 for 4; Kimberly Sonnier, 1 for 4, RBI; Paige Diamond, 1 for 4, run, RBI; M. Hebert, 1 for 3, 2 runs, RBI, walk; Ashley Champagne, 1 for 3, RBI, walk; Sarah Sonnier, 1 for 4, RBI; Noel Baker, 1 for 4 and Evelyn Pontiff, 2 for 3 and 2 runs.
Hanson will take on No. 3 seeded Ascension Catholic on Friday at 2 p.m. in the quarterfinals. Ascension Catholic (23-6) posted a 14-1 five-inning victory over Merryville in the Class 1-A regional pairings on Friday. Merryville, a No. 19 seed, toppled No. 14 seeded Ascension Christian on Monday in the bidistrict action.