By Thomas Sellers Jr.
COVINGTON — The primary thoughts, concerns and even prayers of most attending Thursday night’s showdown between the Tipton-Rosemark Academy Lady Rebels and Covington Lady Chargers was about Covington Baseball Coach Brad Warmath and his wife Paige. The couple is battling cancer and a gofundme page has even organized by the Covington community to assist with cost for the family. In support of the Warmath family, both teams wore special jerseys in Lady Charger colors to demonstrate unity. Once the umpire yelled play ball, those in attendance at the Lady Charger Field focused on the action between the lines. The battle between two of the best squads in West Tennessee lived up to the hype with TRA pulling out a 1-0 victory. “It was good for us,” Lady Rebel center fielder Abby West said. “I think we really needed it.” The Lady Rebels knew offense would be limited against Covington. TRA ace Charli Rice was prepared to do her part in the pitcher’s duel striking out more than 10 Lady Chargers throughout the evening. All the offense she would need came off the bat of West in the fourth inning. After nearly being hit by a pitch, West stepped back into the batter’s box to crush an Covington offer over the centerfield wall for a home run. “I kind of got mad at SanFran because he told me to go because he thought (the ball) hit my foot,” West recalled. “He told me to really sell it. I bet he’s glad I didn’t sell it.” TRA Head Coach Johnie Sanfrantello and the rest of the Lady Rebels welcomed West to home plate with the lead 1-0. The Lady Rebels could only manage two more hits the rest of the game. Meanwhile Rice limited Covington to one hit from the fourth inning to the seventh frame. “I just knew this was an important game,” Rice said. “One for our school and two for us to get more confidence. They are one of the best teams in the area. I wanted to do well to help my team win. That’s what I had to do and what I did.” Going into the seventh inning leading 1-0, Rice kept a neutral mindset. “I was like, ‘We’ve got three more outs,’” she said. “’We’re either going to get it or we’re not. We might go into extra innings. We have to bear down here. This is really important and power through.’” Rice caused two Lady Chargers to hit fly balls to the outfield and poetically she struck out the final Covington batter. As TRA’s marathon of tough March games nears an end, West said the Lady Rebels have learned a lot about themselves in the first three weeks of the season. But the most important less is a fundamental thing.
“We’ve learned a lot about middle and away,” she concluded. “He preaches to us middle and away all throughout March.”
