Patterson 10U All-Stars advance to southwest regional semifinals

The Patterson 10U Babe Ruth Softball All-Stars have advanced to the semifinals of the Babe Ruth Southwest Regional and are just two wins away from advancing to the Babe Ruth 10U World Series in Jensen Beach, Florida, next month.
On Thursday, Patterson won two games, knocking off the Harrison, Arkansas, Sweet Heat in the opening round of double-elimination bracket play, 5-3, before routing Tri-County Arkansas, 15-3, Thursday afternoon in five innings. Tri-County is the Arkansas northern state runner-up.
To advance to the championship, though, the team will have to knock off the Harrison Diamond Divas, the Arkansas State Champs, in the semifinals today at 5 p.m.
Patterson, Louisiana’s state champs, and the Harrison Diamond Divas, Arkansas’ northern state champion, played to a 1-all tie in a game that was called due to time limit during pool play. In that game, Patterson scored a run after Laila Dugar, who drew a walk, came around to score after Kamille Lightfoot doubled.
Lightfoot’s double was the squad’s lone hit. Patterson had three baserunners in the four-inning contest, two via walks.
The Harrison Diamond Divas advanced to the semifinals after defeating Cotter, 10-0, in first-round action Thursday afternoon before knocking off Broken Bow, Oklahoma, Thursday evening. No score was available for the Diamond Divas’ contest against Broken Bow.
In Thursday’s win against the Harrison Sweet Heat, Patterson fell behind 2-0 in the top of the first inning.
However, the local squad scored three runs in the bottom of the first for a 3-2 advantage.
While the Sweet Heat tied the game at 3 in the top of the third, Patterson scored the game’s final two runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Emily Lipari pitched a complete game for Patterson. In six innings, she surrendered three runs on four hits with three walks and eight strikeouts.
Offensively, Rylie Chaisson led Patterson with a double and a single. Other top offensive contributors included Amaya Williams, a double and two runs; Bryleigh DeHart, a double and a run; Lightfoot, a double; Charlotte Calais, a single and a run; Lipari and Dugar, each a single; and Kyla Samuels, a single.
Against Tri-County, Patterson took a 4-0 lead in the first, added single runs in the second and fourth innings and erupted for nine runs in the top of the fifth for a 15-0 lead.
Tri-County scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Lipari and Dugar combined for a one-hitter in the win. Lipari started the game and surrendered no runs on no hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Dugar pitched the final two innings and surrendered three runs on one hit with five walks and five strikeouts.
Tri-County didn’t get its lone hit until the bottom of the fifth inning.
Offensively, Patterson pounded out 14 hits, led by Lipari’s double, three singles and three runs. Other top offensive contributors included Calais, two doubles, a single and two runs; Williams, two singles and two runs; Lightfoot, two singles and a run; Kyla Samuels, a double and a run; DeHart and Dugar, each a single and a run; and Chaisson, Madison Gray and Layla Richoux, each a run.