No. 6 Wallace State softball sweeps Snead State behind Parr’s homer, Ragland’s shutout

HANCEVILLE, ALA. – Wallace State’s sixth-ranked softball team swept Snead State at Bobby McCracken Stadium on Thursday, inching the Lady Lions another step closer to a 10^th straight Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC) North Division title.
Katie Parr’s go-ahead, two-run homer in the fifth inning lifted Wallace State to a 3-2 victory in Thursday’s opener, and sophomore Rachel Ragland tossed a four-hit shutout in the nightcap, a 3-0 win.
Wallace State (48-11, 19-1) has won 19 of its last 20 games, dropping its lone conference game in extra innings at Calhoun on Tuesday.
The Lady Lions rebounded nicely against the Lady Parsons.
“Sometimes it’s not bad to lose. It’s better to lose a game now than in the state tournament. We’ve rebounded well since that loss and won three games in a row,” said Wallace State softball coach Jayne Clem, whose team won the second game against Calhoun two days ago. “We’re still working to get better each and every game.”
In Thursday’s opener, both teams were locked in a scoreless tie until the fourth. Snead State plated an unearned run in the top of fourth off Wallace State starter Amanda Medders.
Wallace State answered in the bottom half of the inning. Parr drew a leadoff walk and came around to score when Snead State committed an error on a Sam Riley grounder.
Parr, who blasted five homers last week, struck again for Wallace State in the fifth. Her two-run shot to left center with two outs handed Wallace State a 3-1 lead, also scoring Olivia Royals who led off the inning with single.
Parr, who hit three homers in a 19-3 win over Southern Union on April 2, leads Wallace State with nine homers and 39 RBIs.
“Katie Parr is starting to believe in what we are telling her. She has to go up there, look for a good pitch and hit it hard. She’s swinging the bat hard and with confidence. She’s starting to believe she can hit any pitcher,” Clem said.
Snead State’s Kathryne Lambert and Danya Snead led off the top of seventh with consecutive singles against Medders, and Lambert scored with two outs on an Emily Duncan RBI single, trimming Wallace State’s advantage to 3-2. Medders struck out the following Snead State batter, stranding a pair of Lady Parsons in scoring position to seal the victory.
Medders allowed one earned run on five hits and struck out three. She improved to a conference-best 23-3.
Brooke Kinsey finished with a pair of singles in the opener and Riley and Katlyn Whitehead each added singles.
Ragland (19-6) stymied the Snead State bats in the finale. The sophomore from Pleasant Grove struck out 10 batters and yielded only four hits.
Wallace State scored all three of its runs in the fourth, supplying Ragland with more than enough support.
Parr and Kinsey led off the inning with consecutive singles and Ragland sacrificed each into scoring position. Sarah Jordan followed with a bloop single to load the bases.
Parr crossed home on a wild pitch for Wallace State’s first run. Two batters later, Julia Dailey added an RBI single and Mackenzie Hill later drew a bases-loaded walk to cap the scoring.
Jordan finished with a pair of singles for the Lady Lions.
Wallace State continues conference action on the road Saturday, traveling to Shelton State for a doubleheader.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit wallacestate.edu.