Lady Pirates win 6-3A district title

The Kaplan Lady Pirates entered Thursday night’s game one win away from claiming the district 6-3A title.
With an 8-6 victory over the Notre Dame Lady Pios, the Lady Pirates of Kaplan are now the proud owners of the moniker District 6-3A Champions.
“It is definitely exciting to win the district title,” Kaplan Head Coach Shay Herpin said. “It is a testament to how well out girls have performed this season. They deserve all the credit.
“We played good solid softball most of the year, and on top of that we have one of the hardest districts in the state. I’m really proud of our team, but we still have a lot more games left to get where we want to go.”
The Lady Pirates found themselves down 1-0 heading into the top of the third inning.
That’s when the bats woke up for the Lady Pirates.
Kaplan would score two runs in the top of the third on errors committed by the Lady Pios infield.
The fourth inning the Lady Pirates extended their lead to 5-1.
Again the Lady Pirates used errors and timely hitting by Oliva Gabor to score three runs in the top of the fourth inning.
The bats continued to stay hot for the Lady Pirates in the fifth inning as Kaplan scored three more runs on RBI singles by Lauren Touchet and Abby Trahan, to make the score 8-1.
The Lady Pios would not go down quietly.
They would score two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, and three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, but it wouldn’t be enough.
The Lady Pios fell to the Kaplan Lady Pirates by the final score of 8-6, and sealing the District 6-3A title for the Lady Pirates.
“We jumped out to an early lead,” Herpin said. “Then they started to come back. We made a few mistakes, and need to clean up some of the routine plays.
“We allowed them to get some momentum late in the game, but we were able to put them away. That’s what I’m most proud of. Our kids didn’t give up, and they didn’t get down when they (Notre Dame) started hitting. A win is a win, and they are all good wins.”
Abby Trahan got the win for the Lady Pirates on the mound by pitching all seven innings, and giving up six runs on 13 hits. She also struck out six Lady Pios.
Along with getting the win on the mound, Trahan led the way for the Lady Pirates at the plate.
Trahan was 2-for-2 with two singles and three RBIs.
Lauren Touchet and Oliva Gabor each scored a run, and had an RBI in the victory.
The Lady Pirates record now stands at 19-5 overall and a 9-1 district record.
The Lady Pirates still have two more games before they season is officially over.
They will square off against Cecillia on Tuesday and Westminster on Wednesday.
These games are all designed to get the Lady Pirates ready for the postseason.
“Beating good teams and winning games like the one on Thursday is what helps build momentum,” Herpin said. “We have two more games against two good teams, and I scheduled them because playing good teams shows you your weaknesses. We want to try and figure all of ours out before we head to the playoffs.”
The Lady Pirates are a lock to make the Playoffs, it’s just a matter of if they will be the number one seed come playoff time.

Andy Bullard
Sports Editor