'Nothing to be ashamed of' for Lady Rebels at state

Vestavia Hills started off strong in the Class 7A state softball tournament, and ended up with a third place finish at Montgomery’s Lagoon Park over the weekend.

The Lady Rebels started things off on Friday with a dominant 12-2 victory over defending 7A champ Baker. They followed that up with a tight 5-4 win over James Clemens to stay in the winner’s bracket for the duration of the first day.

RaeAnn King supplied a home run and Merritt Cahoon a run-scoring double in the win over James Clemens, and King finished the game with a solid defensive play.

Vestavia drew Sparkman in the opening game on Saturday, and never got things going in a 13-3 loss. Senior center fielder Taylor Coe hit a two-run home run to right-center in the contest.

A 9-run second inning was the Lady Rebels’ undoing in the following game against Spain Park, which the Lady Jags won 13-2. Both runs came via a triple down the right field line by Coe to score Mary Sanders James and Cahoon.

Vestavia’s 27-24 record was not on the same level as most of the teams in the state tournament, but is a testament to how the Lady Rebels gelled and got hot down the stretch.

“It says a lot about the girls,” head coach Lissa Walker said. “The girls came together as a team this year and when you go through what we’ve been through, it says a lot about your girls.”

The Lady Rebels will bid farewell to Coe and fellow senior Jordan Reising, whom Walker has spoken highly of all season. She also feels good about the team’s performance at state, despite the finish on Saturday.

“Nothing to be ashamed of,” she said.