Lisbon hits gappers galore, then Emma Pleasant gets more

LISBON — Emma Pleasant held the dagger, and didn’t hesitate to wield it.

Pleasant’s first-pitch grand slam in the bottom of the sixth inning was the final blow, and eighth-ranked Lisbon handled Northeast, 11-4, in a Class 2A softball regional quarterfinal Tuesday night at Bob Bunting Field.

“I’m not normally a first-pitch hitter, but if it felt right, I was going to swing at it,” Pleasant said.

Coach Abbey Shultz confirmed Pleasant’s usual plate patience.

“She usually goes deep in the count,” Shultz said. “We just needed an RBI there, and she ran with it.”

Pleasant’s bomb was the 12th hit of the game for the Lions (25-12), who won their 10th straight game and advanced to host No. 14 Jesup (25-10) — a 7-4 winner against Hudson — in a regional final at 7 p.m. Friday.

“We played Northeast before (a 6-5 win on June 18), and we knew what their pitcher (starter Luxi Coutu) was like,” said Alexa Roos, who enjoyed a 3-for-4 night, scored two runs and drove in another.

“She likes to go low and outside, so we crammed that into our minds, and ended up making it work.”

For a while, it seemed as if the ball was magnetized to the fence in left-center field, because four of the Lions’ hits bounced into that vicinity for doubles.

Sarah Dietsch knocked in the first two runs of the game with a bloop double to right in the second inning, then Kamryn Kahl, Roos, Kaitlynn Hasselbusch and Kyla Kahl wore out the left-center gap in a three-run third that made it 6-2.

Northeast (18-14) got within 6-4 in the fifth inning before Pleasant’s slam ended the drama.

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“My first three at bats didn’t go how I wanted,” she said. “My normal routine, I just wanted to relax before I hit. With the bases loaded, I tried to hit one hard.”

Each of Lisbon’s nine batters had at least one hit. Dietsch (2-for-3) joined Roos in the multiple-hit club.

“They feed off each other really well,” Shultz said. “This team has an inner drive, and showcased it the last half of the season.

“They’re gaining confidence. We played better competition this year, playing in bigger tournaments. We know what we can do against 5A and 4A teams, so we can do it against anybody in 2A.”

Lisbon 11, Northeast 4

Class 2A Regional Quarterfinal, at Lisbon

Northeast 002 020 0 — 4 7 0

Lisbon 033 005 x — 11 12 2

Luxi Coutu, Raelyn Schroeder (3) and Jaycee Witt. Kyla Kahl and Emma Dietsch. W — Kahl (16-6). L — Coutu (7-3). HR — Lisbon: Emma Pleasant (2).

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com